Inmate Resources Episodes

Changing your name while incarcerated is impossible in some states, and quite easy in others. There are countless reasons why someone behind bars might feel the need to legally reinvent themselves. In this episode, we’ll explore the inspiring story of Savannah Turner, formerly Gena, an incarcerated member of PenPals.Buzz. Currently incarcerated for identity theft, Savannah has moved beyond a troubled past filled with poor choices and substance abuse. Today, she seeks to shed her old name and emb...

"Welcome to More than an Inmate's Girlfriend. I'm your host, Jae," speaks a soothing voice each week from her podcast studio in Canada. Since 2024, Jae Ely has been releasing podcast episodes aimed at reducing the stigma associated with prisoners, prison wives, and even pen pals who choose to write to prison inmates. Jae, who is married to an inmate (yet not allowed to communicate with him!) talks about her life, her podcast, and the challenges she's faced along the way. In this exclusive interv...

Books such as The Best Resource Directory for Prisoners and Inmate Shopper list thousands of resources for prison and jail inmates. Companies around the USA offer services including online research, book and magazine sales, email forwarding, gift purchasing, printing photos of beautiful women, pen pals, blogs for inmates, discount phone calls, correspondence college courses, and much more. But which ones are reliable, and which ones should be avoided? In this podcast episode, we interview Illinois inmate, Daniel Patrykus. Daniel's blog, The Best Inmate Service Companies, details some of his go-to companies for inmate services. He talks with us in depth about some of these companies, and why he likes to use them (or not use some of them). Then, we talk with Gary L. Smith, the founder of Felon's Friend, a company that strives to do whatever it takes (as long as it's legal) to help inmates. Finally, we chat with new PenPals.Buzz member, James Hartfield, about his favorite companie…