LIBERTY STATION (KGTV) - A local program is helping incarcerated parents maintain meaningful connections with their children through the simple act of reading together, proving that even prison walls can't break the bond between parent and child.
Bobby sits with his 4-year-old daughter Jazzy, reading from her favorite book about Frozen characters Elsa and Anna. It's a scene that might seem ordinary to most families, but for Bobby, these moments are precious – just months ago, he could only read to his daughter through a screen while he was incarcerated.
"Once there were three baby owls. Sarah and Percy and Bill," Bobby reads aloud, his voice carrying the same warmth whether he's reading in person or through a video recording.
Through a program called Reading Legacies, Bobby was able to record videos of himself reading books and send them to Jazzy during his four-month incarceration. For a parent with a young child, every day of connection matters.
"Being in the situation of being incarcerated, there's not much to be excited about, and when you're able to have something like this and this kind of an opportunity, it is very uplifting," Bobby said.
The program's impact extends beyond maintaining connection – it's actively improving Jazzy's vocabulary and love of learning. Bobby noticed the difference immediately.
"We're just in the truck a little bit ago and we got a muffin and a cookie, and she pulled the cookie out and she said, wow, that's massive," Bobby said. "She uses words that you wouldn't expect a 4.5 year old to use."
This transformation is exactly what Reading Legacies' founders hoped to achieve when they created the program to connect children with their incarcerated parents.
"The happiest part of it is when we hear the stories about how the Bobby stories that this is working, this is connecting the child with the parent," a program founder said.
For Bobby, the program represents something fundamental about parenthood and the lengths parents will go to maintain bonds with their children.
"To most people, your kids are everything. My daughter is my world," Bobby said. "If you're missing or lacking connection with your kids, reading books to them is a passageway into rebuilding that connection."
Today, Bobby and Jazzy enjoy reading adventure books together, with Frozen remaining her favorite. Their story demonstrates how Reading Legacies is successfully building bridges between incarcerated parents and their children, one book at a time.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
