General Information

  • Volunteer Opportunities / Responsibilities: Write Night
    We host regular Volunteer "Write Nights" where volunteers gather with Free Minds members who are home from prison to write cards and provide feedback to poetry written by our members who are still incarcerated at the DC Jail and in prisons throughout the country. Write Night event info can be found on our website at . We also do mobile Write Lunches at local businesses or organizations.

    Writing Blog
    Volunteers are encouraged to post comments on our Writing Blog (https://freemindsbookclub.org/poetry-blog) which we print out and mail to our incarcerated members. The young men in our program LOVE to receive feedback from an unknown reader. It sends a strong message that their voices are heard.

    Letter Writing Circle
    Have a knack for making your word count? Come write letters to Free Minds members about reading and self-expression! Because DC has no federal prison, most of our members serve the majority of their sentences in federal prisons far from home. Through letter writing, you help us foster a sense of family and community for all our members—and you help provide our members with the tools and encouragement to be productive lifelong learners and effective storytellers of their own lived experiences. The letter writing circle takes place every Monday evening from 6:00 to 8:00 pm, over Zoom. If you are interested, please click here to schedule an orientation: https://calendly.com/freeminds/free-minds-letter-writing-session-newbies. Your every word makes a difference. (Minimum 10-hour commitment requested; must be at least 18 years old)

    Transcribing Poetry
    Serve as a liaison between incarcerated poets across the country, and your community! Every 4th Wednesday of every month, Free Minds Book Club & Writing Workshop hosts Write Night events in which volunteers write positive and encouraging feedback on poems by our incarcerated book club members. However, since poems are not sent in already typed, we ask volunteers to help us type poems professionally for distribution. This is especially important when we assemble poems and the feedback to be sent back to its original author. If you are interested in typing poems, please click here: https://calendly.com/freeminds/free-minds-poem-typing. We appreciate your assistance in building the bridge between people of the District!
  • Types of Volunteers Needed: individual/adult; individual/college; individual/high school; adult groups of less than 5; adult groups of 6 or more, including corporate teams
  • Hours Needed: business hours during the week; evenings during the week