How to Send a Care Package to a Prisoner?

If your loved one is currently spending time in prison, sending them a thoughtfully put together care package can give them a feeling of comfort and warmth especially in a difficult time. However, there are certain rules that you need to follow to ensure that your care package reaches your loved one without any roadblocks. As per the new law enforcement, you are not allowed to directly send these packages from your home address for obvious security reasons. How can you then send some tangible love to a friend or loved one in prison?

1. Get familiar with the rules and regulations of sending a package:

The rules for sending care packages vary from one state to another. Therefore, before you take the plunge, ensure that you have familiarised yourself with these rules. Besides, prisons have tie ups with certain care package providers. They usually only accept items that have been sent through these providers.

Prison Finder is a great way to locate the prison in which your loved one is currently serving their sentence. You can also pick and choose the items that they love and send this care package through them. There are also certain rules in certain states where the number of times that you can send a care package is restricted. This means, that in some cases, you may only be able to send a care package every three months. 

2. Know what to send in the package:

Essentially, the items that go into a care package cater to the comfort need or hobbies of the prisoners. Some of the most common products include comfort food items like chocolate and coffee that they can occasionally savour. It could also include meats and other such edibles. Additionally, care packages can also include items that encourage your loved one to continue enjoying their hobbies while in prison. Whether they enjoy reading books, creating art or even playing music, you can send the necessary items accordingly. Personal hygiene products also make for excellent items to make their way into care packages. You can choose to include deodorants, shampoo, underwear and the likes.

However, it is equally important to be knowledgeable about what products are permitted in different kinds of prisons. For instance, inmates who have been incarcerated in Federal prisons have different rules for sending packages than those who are serving their sentence in state prisons.

3. Sign up with a care package service:

Based on the prison in which your loved one is serving their time, it would be ideal to know the rules and regulations of that particular service provider to make it easier for you to send your care packages regularly.

If you try to put together your own care package, you run the risk of the package getting disapproved by the prison authorities. This can be extremely disheartening for your loved one who may be expecting some love in prison. Therefore, it is ideal to sign up with third party care package services as they provide only those items for purchase that have received the approval from the concerned prison.

Using PrisonFinder is a great way to see which prison your loved one has been incarcerated in and how you can send money or care packages to them in the most efficient manner.These third-party care package service providers also provide subscription services which you can use to automatically send them the products every three months.

4. Send the package and track the progress:

Once you have chosen the service that you would like to use to send the care package to your loved one in prison, you can then go through the list of items that have been approved by the concerned prison and select the ones that you’d like. At this point, you will also be required to give details about the inmate to whom you’d like to send the package.

The most common way to identify the inmate is through the Inmate ID. Alternately, you could also enter details of the facility in which the inmate is serving their sentence. Once finalised and payment made, this service provider will then ship the chosen products in a care package to your loved one in prison and you can also track the progress of the package on their website.

Concluding Remarks

Sending a care package to your loved one in prison is a great way of keeping them connected to the outside world, even if in the smallest possible way. Although there are a few restrictions in sending a care package filled with your loved ones’ favourite goodies, in a few simple steps this can be achieved effectively. It is crucial that you familiarise yourself with the rules and regulations of the concerned prison authorities in order to avoid disappointment.