Incarcerated Mothers in Chowchilla Receive Early Mother’s Day Gift

Hundreds of mothers incarcerated in the women’s prison in Chowchilla received an early Mother’s Day present on Friday. They were able to spend hours with their children and caregivers, as the families traveled from all throughout the state thanks to the non-profit organization Get on the Bus.

Get on the Bus has implemented their Mother’s Day program for 16 years. The organization, spearheaded by the Center for Restorative Justice Works and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation allows children to travel to the Central California Women’s Facility, and all expenses are paid.

Olivia Campbell hadn’t seen her four-year old daughter Haylee since last year’s Mother’s Day. Haylee came with Campbell’s mother Concepcion Morales all the way from the San Fernando Valley in Southern California.

Campbell, who is 28-years old and serving time for carjacking, said about being away from her family, "I don’t really think about it, you know? Because it makes me sad."

On Friday, Olivia focused on the time spent with her mother and daughter, as they played Candyland and ate lunch together.

"There’s a lot of pain. She’s been away for five years, and she got 18 years. So, the pain in my heart is, I don’t get to see her a lot because financially, you know, it’s hard, you know, coming up here. So that’s why I take advantage of coming up here with Get on the Bus every year," said Morales.

The meeting area where the incarcerated mothers and their families met, felt like a day care center on Friday. Children smiled and laughed, while mothers hugged them tight. But there were still sobering reminders, as dozens of CDCR Officers stood by, that one was still in a prison.

Iyasmine Harris is serving time for second degree commercial burglary, receiving stolen property, and second degree burglary. The 22-year old mother, originally from Los Angeles County, was reunited on Friday with her 3-year old son for the first time since she gave birth to him as an inmate in jail.

"I was wondering how it was going to be. Is he gonna warm up to me?" asked Harris, as she described her fears and anxieties the days leading up to the Get on the Bus event.

Harris said the reunion with her son was blissful, and she enjoyed the little things, like tying his shoe and showering him with kisses. She said Friday was the best Mother’s Day gift she could have ever received.

Get on the Bus organizers say they hope the annual reunion evokes feelings of forgiveness, healing, and joy, not only in the mothers, but more importantly, in the children.

Amalia Molina, the Executive Director for the Center for Restorative Justice Works commented, "They want to visit their mom. They don’t see an inmate, they don’t know about the crime, they love their mom, they need their mom."

The children the day with special letters from their mothers. Get on the Bus also provided post-meeting counseling for the visiting families as they traveled back home.