In the Book of Matthew, Chapter 25, Jesus says, “Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.”

Mark Frailey was in prison for a time two decades ago, even though he was previously a police officer, was raised in the church and had graduated from Bible college, where he would have been familiar with that passage in Matthew — one that helps provide a foundation for Frailey’s Centre County-based Go Reentry program, designed to help prison inmates get ready to build a life for themselves when they get out.

In prison, Frailey saw things from a point of view he never experienced as a cop, including “dads crying themselves to sleep at night because they missed their kids” and “husbands crying because their wives have taken their kids to live in Florida” — experiences that helped inform an aspect of his program that was realized last month at Altoona Alliance Church: a Christmas party for the children of current inmates in Blair and Cambria county prisons, along with the kids’ guardians.

There were 40 children at the party, which included Santa, a Christmas tree and pizza.

The children of inmates are often called “the silent victims” of crime, according to Frailey.

They suffer emotionally and economically, he said.

They tend to act out more in school than their peers, he said.

And they’re six times more likely to go to jail themselves someday, he said.

He’s been organizing such parties for the children of Centre County Prison inmates for years, but last month’s event was the first for the children of Blair and Cambria inmates, he said.

The goal is “to make these kids feel special, important and loved,” he said.

It’s also to give their incarcerated parents “a way to let their kid know they love them,” he said.

In his current iteration as a jailhouse teacher, Failey can still see the tears — as in mothers who have “rightfully” lost access to their kids through drug activity and who now “sit in class and bawl” because of the loss, he said.

Taking the opportunity

The parties are organized with the permission of prison leadership.

Inmates with children who want to participate provide Go Reentry with their kids’ guardians’ phone numbers.

Guardians who participate provide five gift ideas for each child.

Go Reentry creates paper Christmas tree ornaments for each gift, on which are written the nature of the gift and a number corresponding to the child for whom it is intended.

The ornaments are then distributed among participating churches in the area — there were nine for this event.

The churches placed the ornaments they received on Christmas trees, so congregation members who wanted to participate could pluck one, buy the gift listed on it, then take it back to the church, which forwarded the gifts to Go Reentry.

Each child got five gifts intended specifically for him or her.

The inmates had a chance to leave a note, like “Mommy misses you, and I’m sorry I’m not going to be there for Christmas,” Frailey said.

Most took the opportunity, he said.

Inmates who can maintain stronger relationships with their families while in jail have lower recidivism rates, he said.

Realize they’re not alone

Gail Gray of Johnstown came to the party with her 5-year-old grandson.

The child’s mother, Gray’s daughter, is in Cambria County prison.

“She got mixed into drugs,” Gray said. “She went off the deep end and assaulted me.”

There was also a Protection from Abuse violation and a wrecked car.

Gray has raised the boy from birth, although his mother lived with them.

The daughter was sick when the boy was born.

She had a brain bleed and a heart valve transplant and spent three months in the hospital, Gray said.

The daughter succeeded in getting away from the drugs by completing a drug and alcohol rehab program “with flying colors,” Gray said. “I thought she had got it all together.”

But things unraveled last year.

Her daughter is sorry for what she did, Gray said.

Gray still loves her, but she’s angry.

“I wish the best for her,” Gray said. “But I’ve lost a lot of trust.”

For her part, the daughter has told authorities that Gray has been a “good mom and a better grandma,” Gray said.

Gray tells the boy that “if you break the rules or the law, you go to jail,” she said.

She tells him she hopes he learns “from your mama’s mistakes.”

He knows she did wrong, Gray said.

Once in a while he’ll say, “I miss my mommy,” she said.

He frequently asks what she’s doing, Gray said.

At one point, he asked whether his mother had a Christmas tree in jail.

“I said ‘I didn’t think so,'” she said.

It’s difficult “being a mom all over again” for Gray, who turns 65 this month.

When her grandson screams for attention, she jumps up, but her knees rebel in a way that wouldn’t have happened 30 years ago.

“You can’t keep up in your 60s,” she said.

She has had to cut back from full to part-time work in a pizza shop because of her child-rearing responsibilities.

Gray said she appreciates the party, as it will help her grandson realize he’s not alone in having a parent in jail, she said.

The bespectacled boy spoke briefly to the Mirror.

He sat on Santa’s lap, he said.

He’s sad about his mother, he agreed.

He liked the puppies that were at the party, especially the black one, he said.

He then ran off to sing Frosty the Snowman with the other kids.