Letter of hope, part II

Earlier this year, I wrote about a letter I'd received from an inmate at the Sullivan Correctional Facility in Fallsburg, N.Y. The man, William Hinson, had written about his job at the prison as a foodservice worker and how FoodService Director had inspired him to seek a career in dietetics. He asked for our help, in the form of information, in guiding him along that path.

In addition to my blog, I made Mr. Hinson the focus on my editorial in the February issue. I received advice from several readers; one dear friend of mine even sent me a textbook from The Culinary Institute of America and asked me to send it along to my new pen pal.

Last week, I received another letter from Mr. Hinson, who saw my Opinion page. Here is an excerpt of what he wrote.:

"Mr. King, I am very grateful for the way you are extending yourself towards me in helping me fulfill my goal on becoming a registered dietitian . . . I was very surprised, yet very emotional on how people are also extending themselves."

Evidently, because in my editorial I raised the issue of how some of these letters we might receive from inmates—and we get more than you might imagine—are bogus or some sort of come-on, Mr. Hinson sent me a list of civilian personnel with whom he interacts in the kitchen, including the Food Service Administrator, Bruce Garilt.

I will be corresponding with Mr. Hinson this week when I send off the CIA textbook that was donated. If anyone reading this has words of encouragement for him, please email me at [email protected] and I will forward those along, as well. Maybe we can make a difference in this man's life.