Right now as I write this (December 12th) Felix is in his glory seeing all the snow that fell over the past weekend. He said he got 9 inches. He loved it. He thought it would be nice if it would snow all the time. Of course, you are looking at a southerner who was raised in Florida, and snow is still a novelty even though he has been living in the VDOC since March of 2016 and has seen several snow falls.
This has been a relatively quiet year for Felix. No violence is allowed. Prisons and jails are always noisy, but Felix doesn’t hear much of that. He loves his job in the Silk Screen Plant. The bosses really appreciate Felix’s work ethic. He is happy and he feels productive. In fact, these are his words.
Work is my best friend. I love it there. if they let me shower in the sink and then sleep for a few hours I would stay right there.”
There have been some nuisances he has had to overcome, but nothing that couldn’t be resolved. Felix can watch TV, but he needed a special antenna to get the Closed Captions. He got it approved and I sent it to him via an online source. This has made a big difference to him. He later told me he has to learn to read fast. I had to chuckle at that. I find myself needing closed caption some of the time to help with my hearing problem and it does go fast. But not only does it go fast, since I can hear most of what people are saying, but it also does not fully repeat what is being said, with words and sentences left out. I find it rather confusing. But I often wonder, when closed caption says music is playing what kind of music is a deaf person hearing? When it says a wave sound, what does it sound like to someone who has not heard a wave coming ashore? It is a learning experience for me.
I last saw Felix on Thanksgiving Day. He was in good spirits. We laughed a lot in our communication via passing notes back and forth. We played Tic-Tac-Toe. He won all but one game. He has an analytical mind and sees the end of the game. He tried to tell me how the moves work so one can win all the time. Worked for me just one time. We also played cards and he won most of those games, too. That made him happy.
The vending machines don’t serve food outside of candy bars, protein bars, chips, and sodas, so we didn’t have much of a Thanksgiving lunch. Our visit lasted 3 hours. After I got home (5-hour drive) there was an email waiting from him. “Mom, it was the best Thanksgiving ever”. Couldn’t get better than that!
As to the legal case, Clemency’s Request For Review was denied in October. He can reapply in 5 years. Our next parole hearing is anticipated to be in June 2020. Felix is meeting the requirements. His annual review stated he is a low risk for recidivism and violence – an essential element for parole. He has developed some job skills, has a place to live and people supporting him on the outside, and he is taking classes on self-improvement.
Christmas inside a prison is like any other day for the prisoner. Felix may have a special dinner and watch Christmas movies on TV. But, I’m sure it would make it much more special for him to receive some cards from his supporters. If you send a card to Felix, do not enclose anything, as it could be rejected. Don’t worry about how colorful the card is as it will be copied in black and white and the original, shredded for security reasons. He is still at PRCC but his unit has a different name. The address is:
Felix Garcia #1805390 (C4-129-B)
State Farm Enterprise Unit
3600 Woods Way
State Farm, VA 23160-0002
I am sorry for not posting more often but there have been no big events happening, just minor issues to contend with – which is good. Felix is at peace and has a “life” that he never had before. Thanks to each one of you for caring. He indeed is a special person.
Felix and I would like to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a blessed New Year 2019.
Pat Bliss