A father and grandfather loves up on the children after decades of being unjustly denied

 

Formerly-Incarcerated-Giving-Back-Toy-Drive-flier-121821, A father and grandfather loves up on the children after decades of being unjustly denied, Culture Currents

by Richard Johnson

My name is Richard Johnson. I am the founder of Formerly Incarcerated Giving Back. As you may know, Formerly Incarcerated Giving Back’s mission is to provide for the children of formerly incarcerated individuals.

As the holiday season approaches, I am sending out a call for action for concerned citizens of goodwill to come to the aid of the families of formerly incarcerated individuals. The holidays are a time for joy and togetherness, but many children of formerly incarcerated individuals do not receive toys, gifts or holiday treats due to circumstances beyond their control. 

Formerly Incarcerated’s goal is to minimize the suffering of the affected children during this special season of giving. 

Regardless of the circumstances surrounding their imprisonment, we must dismiss all hesitations, biases and doubts to focus on the children and how they’re being impacted because of circumstances beyond their control. 

Formerly-Incarcerated-Giving-Back-Antwan-Santos-Tanala-johnson-Richard-johnson-Delesha-Johnson, A father and grandfather loves up on the children after decades of being unjustly denied, Culture Currents
Richard Johnson, aka “Uncle RJ,” is finally surrounded by his daughter Delesha Johnson in green and his grandchildren, Tanala Johnson and Antwan Santos, after decades behind the wall. Seems you can always find Uncle RJ organizing to serve the people. Within weeks of returning home, Richard and friends organized a massive and deeply gratifying food giveaway, reminding one participant of deep cultural memory of his African heritage.

Formerly Incarcerated Giving Back, along with ROC (Restoring Our Community Services), are two organizations seeking donations of toys, funds or support for this effort to bring joy to children during the holidays. These groups will provide names of families with children of the formerly incarcerated to ensure that the donations go directly to children and to prevent fraudulent actions.

To prevent any misdirection of donors’ gifts, we are asking the following agencies to provide names and assistance to verify families with children: Social Services, Police Department, Parole Department, District Attorney’s Office.

We also will request that these agencies participate and observe the distribution of toys and gifts to the children. We’re also asking churches to contribute funds and toys as well as a list of prospective families with children to receive the gifts. We will also seek donations from businesses.

For information on how to contribute to this worthy cause, you can reach out to me, Richard directly. My phone number is: 925-481-0496.

You can provide direct contributions through ZELLE: FORMERLYINCARCERATEDGIVINGBACK. 

If you choose this option, please provide a description of (1) who you are donating on behalf of and (2) what you would like your donation to support (i.e., toys/gifts, food or both).

Formerly Incarcerated Giving Back appreciates your consideration to donate during this holiday season.

Happy Holidays,

Richard Johnson, Founder

Formerly Incarcerated Giving Back