Dozens of Tucsonans turned out to write holiday cards and send messages of hope to some of the thousands of people incarcerated in Arizona prisons.
It was still a balmy 65 degrees after the sun dipped out of sight, but between the lights, decorations and holiday music and cheer, the courtyard of the YWCA’s main campus felt downright wintry on the Friday night the cards were written.
The event was co-hosted by a handful of groups that work with incarcerated individuals and people returning from prison or jail, including Just Communities Arizona, The S.T.A.R.T. Project, Death Penalty Alternatives for Arizona, Southern Arizona Legal Aid and the YWCA of Southern Arizona.
The next day, over at Tucson Mall, the Tucson Second Chance Community Bail Fund set up shop in the Southern Arizona Arts and Cultural Alliance’s Catalyst Arts and Maker Space, inviting community members…