Justice-Themed Film Festival Set For 9/23-26

This month's  DN-R Valley Justice column was written by David Smith, an incarceration survivor whose InThrive organization is doing this local event. There will also be exhibits of art work by people in our jails and prisons. Please help us spread the word. 

How were your ideas about our justice system formed? For many of us it was through scripted dramas like Law and Order, movies like Shawshank Redemption, reality TV series like Love After Lock Up, or our favorite true crime podcast–not the reality of what’s happening in our own communities. 

Each time we consume this media we’re letting our narrative about incarceration be shaped not by reality but by entertainment executives who want you to keep watching so they can sell more ads and make more money. The stories are compelling and the drama isreal, but they know they’re not portraying reality, they’re creating entertainment. And in the process  of creating entertainment they warp our understanding of what it means to be impacted by incarceration.

What if we understood the impact of incarceration not through the lens elite mediaexecutives but through the stories of people who actually lived it?

The Inthrive Film Festival is the only touring film festival to celebrate the voices and talents of actual incarceration survivors. Started in Richmond, VA, in 2023, the Inthrive Film Festival creates spaces for incarceration survivors to share their stories through film and art so the community can experience them first hand, be challenged by what they see, entertained by what they experience, and become connected to people in their communities striving to make a difference in the lives of people impacted by incarceration. 

We seek out films from around America that tell stories you won’t hear anywhere else. These films are just as entertaining and moving as what you can stream on your tablet or watch on TV but instead of being made by people who have never experienced incarceration they celebrate the voices and talents of incarceration survivors.

So what happens when we listen to people who have been incarcerated tell their stories on their terms? What happens when we give them the camera, the pen, the mic to share their real drama? We experience stories of trauma and overcoming, pain and resilience, sadness and joy. And, most importantly, we gain a truer understanding of what our criminal justice system is like and what it means to survive incarceration.

These are the powerful, moving stories you’ll discover when you come out to the Inthrive Film Festival-Shenandoah Valley presented by the Valley Justice Coalition from September 23-26. You’ll experience scripted dramas that show us the real life struggles of youth and others in our justice system and inspire us to dream of better ways to practice justice in America. You’ll learn from documentaries that challenge our views on treating addiction and show us what’s possible after incarceration when we support people in reentry. And you will see art made by local currently incarcerated men and women. 

Beyond the films and art, you can meet people and organizations working to make the Shenandoah Valley safer and be part of the conversation with local civic leaders and incarceration survivors as we discuss how we can remove barriers to successful reentry and reimagine former carceral spaces here in the Shenandoah Valley.

Are you interested in experiencing what stories about our prison and justice system are like when told by people who have survived it? Do you want to be part of the conversation on how we can improve the Shenandoah Valley for everyone? 

Then come and join the Inthrive Film Festival for films, community, and discussion at Eastern Mennonite University on Wednesday, September 23; Mary Baldwin University on Thursday, September 24; Bridgewater College on Friday, September 25; and the public forums at Virginia Mennonite Retirement Community (10-11:45 am at the Detwiler auditorium) and the Divine Unity Community Church (3-5 pm at 1680 Country Club Road) on Saturday, September 26. 

Thanks to the financial support of local sponsors like Park Rose Apartments, Bridgewater College, Cook Attorneys, Hometown Realty Group, Virginia Mennonite Retirement Community and the Park View Federal Credit Union, all of the Inthrive Film Festival events are free. We hope you’ll join us to experience powerful stories, connect with amazing people, and discover new ways to make the Shenandoah Valley a better community for everyone.

Full schedule and listing of films at: https://inthrivefilmfestival.org/shenandoah-valley. 

An Appeal For Prison Reform From The Inside

Charles Zellers has a stellar record of behavior over his nearly forty years of incarceration,and has been a positive role mentor for many younger incarcerated men at Buckingham and now at the Deerfield Correctional Center. Since he will likely not be eligible to serve on the Governor's Community Partnership Council on Corrections, I am posting some of his practical concerns here.

1). Remove the Keefe Group, LLC, from Commissary and Personal Property and allow Walmart, Sam's Club, etc. to bid on the commisary contract. Those who will provide inmates commissary and personal property at the lowest possible prices, lower than Keefe's.

2). Offer the following items on commissary and personal property:
> 1/8" = 1'0" scale drafting templates
> 3-ring binder
> Sharpie Pocket Style Highlighters, Assorted Fluorescent, chisel tip
> carbon paper
> healthier food items
> Reeves Sketching pencils - 12 artist grade - graphite
> Sharpie Highlighters Jumbo - assorted fluorescent colors
> wireless 2-way Headphone Splitter

3). Correctional Centers should be all about getting basic education, and should function as normal grades 1-12 schools. No one should be in regular school over 12 consecutive years. Once the inmate receives a GED, the inmate's case manager should look to see where the inmate will be released to, the businesses in that area that need help, or transfer the inmate to the facility that could provide him or her with the job skills needed to be released in that area.

4). State Prisons (Red Onion & Wallens Ridge): These two prisons should be used for the Incorrigible inmates only. Those inmates who refuse to follow their treatment plan such as obtaining a GED, Vocational Trade, Self-help Programs, etc. Housed in a separate housing unit shpuld be those with life and no possibility of parole and are willing to work.

5). Undercover Bosses: Insert undercover bosses into each VADOC facility secretively with only VADOC's Head of Security, Director, and other heads knowing. No one at the facility should know. Not even the Warden because they could be doing illegal things too.

6). Undercover Inmates: Selected inmates could have their reading or prescription glasses equipped with cameras to record the wrongdoings of staff.

7). Repeal Code of Virginia Section 53.1-190. Hold Account that authorizes VADOC to withhold a maximum of $25 from each inmates account until released. Move $25 to a new High-Yield Savings account for each inmate.

8). Repeal Code of Virginia Section 53.1-43.1. Savings Account that authorizes VADOC to withhold a maximum of $1,000 from each inmates account until released. Move all up to $1,000 to a new High-Yield Savings Account for each inmate.

9). High-Yield Savings Account (Fixed 6% APY tax free): Open each inmate their personal high-yield savings account that pays a fixed rate 6% APY that is tax free. 10% of all inmate received funds shall go into this account. The inmate can only remove funds from this account if s/he has a minimum of $25,000, is released from prison, has a medical code that will not allow the inmate to work any longer or has a terminal medical diagnosis.

10). Inmate Pay Increase (COV 53.1-32.1(c)(5)):
> unskilled pay increase $0.27 to $1.35
> semiskilled pay increase $0.35 to $1.75
> skilled pay increase $0.45 to $2.25
> ADA/Caregivers, Group Facilitators, Peer Mentors, Recovery Specialists and SAFETE Aides from $1.00 to $3.00 per hour

> Certified Peer Recovery Specialists and Vocational Aides/Tutors from $1.25 to $3.25 per hour

(these increases barely reflect the inflation rate since the current wages were set)

11). In-person and Video Visits: Every Inmate housed within the VADOC shall be allowed in-person and video visits with any immediate family member. This will include niece, nephew, great niece and nephew as long as they are with their legal parent or guardian. This includes all with barrier crimes or who have to be on the registry upon release. Those with sex offenses will be released one day too.

12). Close Marion Correctional Center: I have heard so many horror stories about how the staff at Marion C. C. abuses the inmates, I believe it should have an undercover boss and an undercover inmate housed there to investigate for 6 months to a year.

13). Governor Abigail Spanberger should work at reducing the VADOC population: Virginia prisons are overcrowded and understaffed leading to decompensations when left unmonitored. The inadequate training and unprofessionalism allows manipulations and extortions that lead to a humanitarian crisis.

14). VADOC is not protecting its disabled inmates. State law requires disabled inmates to be housed in a manner that provides for their Safety and Security. COV 53.1-266 and Virginia Administrative Code 6 VAC 15-45-530.

15). Online Services: Allow VADOC inmates to purchase online their local hometown newspaper or the one where their home plan is located.

16). Online Services: Unlimited access to career employment, vocational and job skill training apps and instructional videos. For example: Business and Office Management, College courses, AutoCAD, Computer-Aided Design, Drafting, Modeling and Rendering, Landscaping, Computer Game Design, Educational Games, Personal Finance, Adobe (Photoshop, Reader, PDF, PDF Layering), Technical Writing, Website Design, House Building, Surveying, Solar System Design and Installation, etc.

17). How To App: You type in what you want to know how to do and one or more How to videos pulls up and you watch them. FREE for ALL inmates.

18). VADOC Television: ALL VADOC Prisons shall have the following educational television stations and video series such as:
> Dirty Jobs
> Discovery
> HGTV
> How It Is Made
> Made In Virginia
> Modern Marvels
> MSNBC
> This Old House
> TVLAND.

Seven White Men Canonized As Great Leaders

This meme by Faith Over Fear Motivation, a pro-administration group, reminds me of this definition of canonization, "To place someone on a high pedestal, treating them as if they can do no wrong or praising them as a hero."

One of the marks of Christian nationalism is the elevation of people in power to a status of near reverence while ignoring the Bible's warning against placing undue trust in mere mortals. 

Jesus and the Hebrew prophets remind us that in God's upside-down empire it is those who are seen as lesser who are truly the greatest, as in, "You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those who are great exercise authority over them. Yet it shall not be so among you; but those who desire to become great among you, let them be your servants."

Here are just a few of a multitude of examples of everyday, extraordinary servants whose lives represent the kind of greatness unmatched by most people in positions of power.

Ruth Yoder Stauffer left her farm home near Johnstown, Pennsylvania, in the early '50's to enroll in Goshen College in Indiana to become a nurse, and never looked back. She spent her entire life in unselfish service as a nurse and a nursing instructor in places like Peru, Vietnam (during the height of the Vietnam War), and at Hesston College (KS). 

Laurence Sauder, a beloved member of our community for most of his adult life, made an indelible mark as a pastor, Bible teacher, and as the builder of many of the housing units in Virginia Mennonite Retirement Community's Park Village. We were privileged to be his and his wife Evelyn's neighbors for the last years of his fruitful and productive life. Laurence was one of the kindest people ever.

Rachel Stoltzfus and her husband Robert offered hospitality to scores of international students at nearby Eastern Mennonite University. As a young adult Rachel pictured herself as accepting  some foreign mission assignment, but instead had the world coming to her door, including during her many years as a widow. At her memorial service, people from far and near paid tribute to how they had been blessed by her kindness as a beloved "mom Rachel." 

Michael Cooley is someone I learned to know and appreciate as a pastor of a sister house church congregation near Edinburg. He gave up a lucrative career to pursue his passion, that of collaborating with farmers around the world in finding ways of increasing crop yields and easing hunger. He and his wife are currently doing amazing work through the Equipping Farmers International organization.

When Did We See You Homeless Or Hungry Or Thirsty Or A Stranger Or Naked Or Sick Or In Prison And Not See You Were Taken Care Of?

According to Jesus' words in Matthew 25, the key questions on our Final Exam will not be about orthodox beliefs but whether our beliefs resulted in seeing, and responding to, the needs of God's children. Photo by Mennonite Central Committee, one of my favorite charities.

The following are just of the few of the many emergency relief and development organizations that appear on my Facebook page every day, followed by some of the images associated with their appeals. Maybe this is at least a partial answer as to the question, "When did you see me...?

World Food Program USA

Catholic Relief Services

Global Refuge

Human Develpment Fund

Share The Meal

Action Against Hunger

Doctors Without Borders

CARE.org

International Rescue Committee

Oxfam America

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Today's post is not meant to create guilt but to remind us of our many opportunities love our neighbors far and near just as we love and care for ourselves and our loved ones. In the end, we will not be judged not so much by whether we have shared enough, but by how much we have needlessly kept and spent on ourselves that could have aided our hungry and homeless world neighbors. 

God wants everyone to have enough. 

https://harvyoder.blogspot.com/2026/07/a-modest-proposal-for-11th-commandment.html

A Prisoner, 67, Commends Parole Board In Today's DN-R "Justice Matters" Column

Jonathan D. White, 67, has been infraction-free since his
incarceration at age 21, but like so many others, has been
denied parole year after year. Meanwhile he has earned a
degree from Liberty University and has taken every
possible vocational training and personal growth class
available to him.

On July 20, Gov. Abigail Spanberger reflected on her first six months in office. Following a challenging start in the General Assembly, where she opposed both new marijuana legislation and a data center project, the governor announced a new parole board on March 4, 2026. 

On that same day three representatives of the Valley Justice Coalition (VJC) were in Richmond to take part in a special meeting with Joseph Walters, the newly appointed Director of the Virginia Department of Corrections (VaDOC) and members of his staff to discuss the Department’s agenda to improve safety and increase operational transparency within prison facilities.

Subsequently, Shannon Dion, the new Parole Board chair, invited these same VJC members to a Zoom conference with the rest of her board. The meeting served as an introduction to the new members and included a Q&A session addressing the significant backlog of cases inherited from the previous administration.

During the Youngkin administration and under the leadership of the former chair, few eligible and deserving offenders were granted parole, leaving a substantial volume of unfinished work for the new board. They are currently sorting through cases to prioritize decisions for those dating back to September 2025, as in, "Which bad apple do we keep, and which do we release?” The entire parole-eligible population, those incarcerated before parole was abolished in 1995, is back in the "apple barrel" once again.

The newly-appointed VPB has been in training since its official appointment on March 6. Cases are now even more backlogged because they didn't have the positive assistance for transition from the previous board. As a result, not a single parole was granted from January 1 through March while the new board was gearing up for its work.

Here is the trail so far: In April, two men refused their parole because they were "discharging" their sentence and did not want to be placed under any conditions of parole whatsoever. They signed the PB16 Parole Refusal Form and several weeks later were released with no obligations to any parole conditions in the Commonwealth. In reality, the debt they owed was paid.

In May, a man and a woman were granted a "compassionate release" because they were terminally ill. Death at home for these parolees was mercy to them and their family members.

Also in May, out of 12 revocation hearings from the backlogged cases, eight were continued back to their previous parole status. The other four were sent back into the VaDOC.

According to the VPB website, there were three persons granted parole in June, with four others given parole revocations. Two others had their sentences discharged, and 10 parole violators were returned to prison.

The July numbers have been far more encouraging. On July 9, public hearings conducted by the board resulted in five grants and one denial. Two of the grants were for men at the Lawrenceville Correctional Center, one of Virginia’s three Model Initiative Facilities (others are Dillwyn and Buckingham Correctional Centers).

At last week’s public hearings (July 23), all 10 deserving persons reviewed were granted parole. Of the two released at Lawrenceville, one is in my pod and has been a part of the "Second Look Parole Preparation Program” that I and another prisoner co-facilitate. It aims to prepare people for their review hearings and help them become productive citizens both in prison and upon release.

We commend the Spanberger-appointed parole board for responsibly fulfilling their mission statement, to “grant parole or conditional release to inmates whose release is compatible with public safety." This is in the best interest of every citizen of the Commonwealth.

My remaining question is personal, “Can people like me, who have maintained a model prison record for 45 years, and who have become a mentor and role model for countless other incarcerated persons, expect to be released?”

Note: The Daily News-Record publishes a Valley Justice Coalition "Justice Matters" column on the last Friday of each month.

A Modest Proposal For An 11th Commandment

  • Eleven • 

"You shall not claim the right to more than enough as long as any of God's children anywhere have less than enough." 

I can already hear some serious objections to the above. How dare we add to the sacred Ten Words given at Mount Sinai? And does this even align with what the Bible actually teaches?

A defense:

1. Moses, the great lawgiver and leader of God's people, would surely affirm this, noting that the daily food God provided in the wilderness was aways to be gathered and shared equally. He would also remind us of God's commands to release people of their debts every seventh year and to restore land to their original owners after every 49th year, the year of Jubilee.

2. The Hebrew prophets would surely add their Amen in light of the importance they placed on justice for the poor and the dispossessed, and in light of God's judgement on those who disregard the needs of orphans, widows and refugees in need.

3. The psalmist and the writers of the Proverbs would point to some of the many passages that call for generosity and justice for all people.

4. Jesus would affirm how this resonates with Kingdom economics, and with God's will being done everywhere on earth as it is in heaven. 

5. The apostles and first century church leaders from many nations would embrace this as aligning with believers making sure there was "no needy person among them," and with Macedonian churches called to raise funds for the needs of people in far off Judea.

Like it or not, to agree to anything counter to this commandment would be to claim an inherent right to better treatment for some of God's children than others. What Divine Creator and Sovereign would ever consider that as being OK?

Having said all this, I realize that we at our house are far from faithfully reflecting all the life changes this commandment calls for. But as stewards rather than owners of God's wealth we must begin by experiencing this fundamental change of mind and heart, and by repenting of our claim to a right to more than enough while others have less than enough.

We all know God has no favorites, period. Whether white, brown, North American, native or foreign, enough is all we are entitled to.

Should Voters Be Required To Pass A Poll Test?

With tongue firmly in cheek, let me propose having every US voter take a simple True or False test this fall to prove their mental fitness for responsibly carrying out their "civic duty." The test would require an affirmative answer to each of the following four statements, as follows:

T  F  1. Donald Trump won the 2016 election, as did many candidates of both parties, under the watchful eye of the second Obama administration, as duly certified by professional election officials in fifty states.

T  F  2. Joe Biden won the 2020 election, as did many candidates of both parties, under the watchful eye of the first Trump administration and as duly certified by virtually the same  professional election officials in fifty states.

T  F  3. Donald Trump won the 2024 election, as did many candidates of both parties, under the watchful eye of the first Biden administration and as duly certified by virtually the same professional election officials in fifty states.

T  F  4. I affirm that under the watchful eye of the second Trump administration, and as duly certified by virtually the same professional election officials in fifty states, that I will accept the upcoming midterm election results as reflecting the will of the people.

The following link takes you to a literacy test for potential voters used in Louisiana until the Voting Rights Act was passed in 1965. Like similar tests required in other southern states these were typically arbitrarily graded, so the slightest error could disqualifying an African Americans from voting. 

https://sharetngov.tnsosfiles.com/.../Voter%20Test%20LA.pdf

Here's a link to some of my thoughts about voting: http://harvyoder.blogspot.com/2013/10/would-jesus-vote.html