There’s a community in Wayne County with some pretty surprising demographics. Catholics, Protestants, and Muslims coexist there in equal numbers with very little hostility. The preferred holiday gift is a state-approved gourmet meat sampler. And don’t even get started on the male to female ratio. But perhaps the most singular feature of this community is the fact that its 1,400 residents cannot leave. This community is, of course, the State Correctional Institution in Waymart, and ministering to the spiritual needs of these men are Glenn J. Biagi, Chaplain of the Catholic Community, and William Gagas, Facility Program Chaplaincy Director. Along with Terry Fazio, Public Information Officer, and Imam Hakim Ali, these men use ingenuity, a shoestring budget, and their own deep wellsprings of faith to provide a joyful holiday season under very stressful circumstances.
“As an example, St. John’s Episcopal Church or St. Rose’s Church will send volunteers in to conduct a worship service in the prison Chapel,” explains Gagas. “We want to make sure people of all faiths are represented.”
To accomplish this feat, a carefully planned timetable including more than a dozen services celebrating Christmas, Hanukkah, and Eid al-Adha are provided by volunteers from far and near.
“Our Muslim cleric comes from Binghamton, New York,” explains Fazio. “He drives down here to minister to our Muslim prisoner’s needs.”
The needs of these prisoners, and indeed prisoners of all faiths, become more acute this time of year. For many inmates at state facilities, the Christmas season will be spent apart from families and loved ones, with not even a present to liven the festivities.
“The first year (in prison) is the hardest, usually,” says Biagi. “It’s when it sinks in, when anger and depression can really take hold.”
Sometimes this depression ends in tragedy. In early December, the prison staff mourned the first successful suicide at the facility in years, that of Christopher Blevins, who was serving a 5-year sentence for corruption of minors. But even for hardened criminals, the holidays can take an emotional toll.
“We have people here serving 25-year sentences, and after the first few years...the families don’t always come around as much,” says Fazio.
So the staff members do the best they can with what they have, which isn’t always much.
“The menu on holidays is set across the state; we can’t change it. The inmates get turkey on Thanksgiving, turkey on Christmas, and roast pork on New Year’s,” says Fazio. “As far as activities go, we’ll set up movie nights, where the prisoners can watch movies every day. Entertainment will also come in to the prison, weather permitting. We had two bands that were supposed to play but they had to cancel because of the snow. There’s also an inmate Glee Club, who sing for the prisoners.”
