Bars – Conclusion

Bars. I have been sharing of my experiences as a visitor on death row. Today, I will wrap up this topic, but I have a heart for this subject. If you’d like to continue a discussion offline, I would be happy to sit a spell.

After moving back to my hometown in southern Mississippi, my time as a visitor at Riverbend ended. Tim was back in Memphis with his family, and I had a new life and mission caring for my mother.

By chance, or maybe not, a fellow Nashville friend shared an Advent series in 2017 organized by Michael McRay. I thought it sounded like something I’d enjoy, so I signed up to receive the weekly Advent devotional.

During that Advent season, I learned that Michael has a Masters in Conflict Resolution and Reconciliation from Trinity College Dublin. He has done some amazing things and is a very inspirational person.

Since that time, I am happy to say he has become a friend. I have had the privilege of participating in several of his ‘Becoming Restoried’ workshops. I will include a link at the end of this blog if you’d like to learn more about Michael and the wonderful work he is doing.

One particular Advent devotional touched my heart and spirit. Written by Tony Vick, he is an inmate at South Central Correctional Facility in Clifton. TN. He is currently serving two life sentences. The thing that stood out in Tony’s words was a thread of hope. Since Michael had included Tony’s contact info, I wrote a quick letter explaining who I was. I thanked him for reminding me of the hope we have in Christ and how much his devotional touched my heart.  Within a week or so, I received a letter back. 

Tony and I became fast friends. We started talking on the telephone and I learned that Tony had a group of friends that acted on his behalf. He had written a book and they took care of all his personal needs. I asked if I could join the group. YES, was his reply. He had garnered a large mailing list and shared essays every other month. The woman in charge was getting on in years and overwhelmed.
 

In March 2018 I took over his mailing list and began to help produce his bi-monthly essays. Friends of Tony Vick also entered the Twitter-sphere by myself and my husband. Tony composed and sent “Tweets” to us by regular mail and then we in turn posted them weekly. We quickly saw a huge following come together. We even communicated with the family members of other prisoners across the U.S, sharing resources and information. 

Next, enter Jeff Noland and Terrence Heard. Through Tony, I became friends with both guys. Jeff was Tony’s cellmate at the time. Jeff was released in October 2020 after serving his ten-year sentence. I also began to produce a monthly newsletter for Terrence.

Since Jeff’s release, he has taken over Friends of Tony Vick and has grown the Twitter account to close to 20,000 followers. Most are ex-inmates or family members of someone incarcerated. 

Each man has a story, but the central theme of each is childhood trauma. Through their friendship, I have learned more about myself. It has also shown me society’s pre-conceived ideas of prison, as well as the reality of prison life.

Tony and Jeff have co-authored a new book, “Locked In and Locked Out.” Tony speaks from the viewpoint of spending life in prison, and Jeff shares what re-entering society has been like.

Below are several links:

* Information on Michael McRay and Becoming Restoried

* Link to Tony D. Vick’s book – “Secrets From A Prison Cell”

* Link to Tony D. Vick and Jeff Noland’s new book

* Twitter handle for Friends of Tony Vick

If you are interested in becoming a pen-pay to Tony Vick or Terrence Heard, please leave a note in the comments, or contact me via email, thcountzwrites@gmail.com.