(By Sheri Trusty, Seneca County Sheriff’s Office Public Relations Coordinator)

Christmas came a little early to the Seneca County Jail. On Dec. 20, about 20 members of the Seneca County Jail Chaplaincy Committee gathered in the jail’s training room to pack Christmas gift baskets for inmates.

The gift baskets were filled with a variety of gifts, including activity books, pencils, toothpaste, deodorant, chips, and candy bars.

The committee has been donating gift baskets to the jail for 30 years.

“Every single person housed in the jail gets one,” said Cpl. Barbara Brooks, who helps organize the event with Chaplaincy Committee Chairman John Bergman from Bible Baptist Church.

Cpl. Brooks distributed the gifts later that day. The jail currently houses about 150 inmates, and the committee packed about 165 bags. Cpl. Brooks kept the extra packages for people who will arrive during the week.

“I get a lot of thank yous,” Cpl. Brooks said. “For some, this is the only Christmas gift they’ll get.”

The Seneca County Jail Chaplaincy Committee is an ecumenical group comprised of representatives from several different local churches. It was formed in 1994 by Sister Jackie Doepker with a mission to minister to inmates. The group has been providing Christmas gift baskets since then.

“We’ve done this every year, except the COVID year,” said Sister Maureen Studer, who has been part of the Chaplaincy Committee since its second meeting in 1994.

Providing Christmas gifts is a small part of the Chaplaincy Committee’s impact in the jail. Every weekday, a member of the committee visits the jail to offer one-on-one visits with inmates. The visits are voluntary and give the inmates an opportunity to talk to clergy about anything that is on their mind.

The committee hosted religious services in the jail for many years, but they were discontinued under a previous administration during COVID.

“When Sheriff (Fredrick) Stevens came in, he allowed us to do one-on-one visits,” Sister Maureen said. “We’re glad the Sheriff came in and let us do them.”

The weeknight ministry is having a strong impact on the inmates.

“Any inmate who wants to can see clergy,” Bergman said. “We’ve had good success with the one-on-one. They appreciate it so much.”

Bergman is grateful to be a part of the Chaplaincy Committee. He was initially uneasy about working in a jail setting, but sitting in a jail service several years ago changed his heart.

“The inmates were so quiet. They were focused on the preaching,” Bergman said. “That’s the first day my ‘wanter’ was changed. God changed what I wanted to do. This is what I want to do now.”

Committee member Wendell Rogers helps the committee obtain Bibles through Rock of Ages Prison Ministries, and the Bibles are distributed to inmates for free. In early December, the group provided two Christmas cards and stamps to each inmate so they could send cards to family for the holidays.

No tax dollars are used for any of the Chaplaincy Committee’s projects, including the Christmas gift baskets. The gifts were donated by local businesses, churches, and committee members.

The gift baskets bring a little holiday cheer to inmates who will spend Christmas behind bars, away from family. Several of the jail staff will also spend Christmas away from family. Cpl. Brooks worked on Thanksgiving, and she will work on Christmas Eve and on Christmas Day. The inmates are lucky to have her and the other compassionate staff there on the holiday.

“On Thanksgiving, I spent a good half hour with an inmate who was having a hard time,” she said. “I talked with him. It’s hard for them to be away from family on a holiday.”