ALLOUEZ — In 2019, The Compass invited readers to donate funds to provide subscriptions of the diocesan newspaper to inmates at three local correctional institutions. The appeal was successful, with $2,688 donated, providing 125 one-year subscriptions for inmates in Oshkosh, Green Bay and Redgranite.
With these subscriptions now exhausted, The Compass is again seeking donations to renew inmate subscriptions.
“When the pandemic hit, jail and prison ministry was suspended indefinitely. Now more than ever, in a time of fear and uncertainty, it is important to extend the merciful love of Christ to our correctional facilities,” said Compass advertising and marketing manager Amy Kawula. “We invite you to prayerfully consider a gift to help us reach those in greatest need by providing The Compass to the facilities in the Diocese of Green Bay to meet our chaplains’ requests.”
Deacon Jeff Prickette, pastoral leader at Prince of Peace Parish in Bellevue, served as a minister to inmates at the Oshkosh Correctional Institution for seven years. “I saw over and over how they used The Compass as an informational tool, as well as a spiritual help,” he told The Compass. “In fact, when I was transferred here to Prince of Peace, a couple inmates sent me congratulatory notes saying they missed seeing me.”
Deacon Prickette said The Compass offered inmates “wonderful articles on our faith, which they take very seriously. … The Compass is one of the tools that helps them on their way back to Jesus.”
He added that the pandemic adds a challenge for inmates. “I continue to pray for them every day, especially during this time of COVID,” he said. “I pray for their safety, health and continued conversion to Jesus. I saw that conversion in so many of those men and I miss that connection terribly.”
Readers can send tax deductible donations, payable to The Compass, to: The Compass, Attn: Prison Ministry, PO Box 23825, Green Bay, WI 54305-3825 or, call (920) 272-8208 to process a credit card payment.
If more than $1,000 is raised, The Compass will set up a fund to continue offering these subscriptions to additional inmates, according to Kawula.