Giving hope is the mission of the prison ministry

Intermountain Catholic

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Illa Wright (right), prison ministry coordinator, presents Carol Dillingham with the eighth Father Thomas J. Kaiser Award for her service as a volunteer in the jail ministry. Dillingham was surprised and excited to receive the award. She has been a volunteer for eight years. IC photo by Christine Young

TAYLORSVILLE — "Being a volunteer in the detention and jail ministry for the past eight years has been a real education for me. These people are hungry for the Word of God," said Carol Dillingham at the Catholic Ministry for the Incarcerated Adult and Youth Father Thomas J. Kaiser Award Banquet Jan. 30.

The banquet was held at the Old Spaghetti Factory in Taylorsville. Dillingham received the eighth Fr. Thomas J. Kaiser Award for her volunteer service in visiting the incarcerated.

"We are here at this banquet to acknowledge one another and give thanks for one another," said Deacon Hector Mota in his welcome. Deacon Mota, from Saints Peter and Paul Parish, has been serving in the detention and jail ministry for 11 years.

"This is a hard ministry, and we need more volunteers. So we are grateful for all of you who give of your time to help these people in the jails and especially the youth in the detention centers," said Deacon Mota. "There are a lot of troubled kids out there who need our help, need somebody to listen to them, and guide them. A lot of their trouble comes from a lack of family structure and a lack of discipline. They need us to encourage them. Even though they made bad choices, they are still good kids. We need to encourage them to keep making good choices. All they know is neglect and abuse. That is why we go there, to let them know there are people out there who care for them. It is our job to reach out to them and give them hope."

"Thanks be to God and to all of you volunteers of Decker Lake, Salt Lake Valley Detention Center, Salt Lake County Oxbow Jail, and Wasatch Detention Center," said Illa Wright, prison volunteer coordinator. "Tonight an award is given to a volunteer in recognition of Fr. Thomas Kaiser who started this ministry. Each volunteer has given time, monetary gifts, and love. This is the reason for the success of this group. This award is given to one individual, but each of you contributes to its success. Each volunteer has a spiritual gift. There are different kinds of gifts which come from the Holy Spirit. Together we build up Christ’s body in the Church. Look at the gifts God has given you. God sent his angels to care for you, his Holy Spirit to dwell in you, his Church to encourage you, and his Word to guide you. Tonight we honor Carol Dillingham for the special gifts she has given to the incarcerated.

Wright said, "Our motto is Matt 25: 35-36 "For I was hungry and you gave me food, thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you clothed me, ill and you cared for me, and in prison and you visited me."

"I love visiting the people in the detention centers and the jail," said Dillingham. "The incarcerated people want to know somebody loves them. I tell them our Mother Mary loves them. Women who have been mistreated find comfort in praying the rosary and talking to Mary. One little boy was angry because his father had died. He found comfort in talking to God and Mary through the rosary.

"I got into the jail and detention ministry because I retired, and after three months I didn’t know what to do with myself," said Dillingham. "I had done everything I wanted to do. So my friend told me to talk to Illa, who interviewed me and hired me on the spot. I have been going ever since. It has been a wonderful journey. It has been very educational. Getting to know Illa has been special. The way she talks to the inmates at the jail is really special. She gets them to talk when nobody else can. Illa taught me the ins and the outs, the do’s and the don’ts.

"I would have to say the most important part of this ministry is pray, pray, pray," said Dillingham. "We pray for the people and with the people. It is important to listen to them. A lot of times you can relate with them in family matters such as what their family is going through or has been through. They are just lost souls. Most of them are going to get out and make it. Some of them will go back one or two times, but after that it seems like they turn around, go through rehabilitation, and make it."

"It makes you feel so good when you are in the store and you hear someone say your name and turn around and someone says ‘thank you,’ and you have no idea what you did," said Dillingham. "All we do is go talk about Jesus, and Mother Mary, and try to listen. It is a wonderful ministry, and the success rate is good. It is satisfying. If you don’t know how to pray, become a volunteer, and you will learn how to pray because you are always praying for the incarcerated."

Deacon Manuel Trujillo from Saint Olaf Parish, Bountiful, said he prays before the Blessed Sacrament before he goes to the Davis County Jail to visit the incarcerated. Then he asks Jesus to come with him. He said without prayer he could not do this ministry. He also prays for the Holy Father, Pope Benedict the XVI, the Most Rev. John C. Wester, the priests, the deacons, his family, and all the incarcerated.

"On my way to the jail, I have a conversation with Jesus because I do not always know what I am going to say to the inmates," said Deacon Trujillo. "I say, here I am Lord I come to do your will. When I get to the jail I offer the inmates a Communion Service, and I tell them God loves them and cares for them. God does not care what they have done, he wants them to have hope that they can get rid of their addictions. He knows they are in jail because they made mistakes and bad choices. I tell them to invite Jesus into their hearts, and that it is up to them to choose to follow Jesus, or they will remain in jail. Without Jesus I would not be able to do this ministry."