We help the families and friends of incarcerated people organize a visit to prisons in any US State.
Improve the wellbeing of society by maintaining relationships between incarcerated people and their loved ones, enabling successful reintegration into society after release.
We have already helped more than 150 people visit their loved ones.
We organize visits between family members in all 50 states.
Fill out our questionnaire in just a few minutes to determine if we can organize your visit together.
Our founders know incarceration firsthand. While they spent months to years in the prison system, when they were released they were able to return home to their families and support networks. Their lives mostly went back to normal. They could put their mistakes behind them and move on.
But several of the people they served time with, who did not have the same level of privilege and support, were not as lucky. PVF was created to give others the same opportunity to stay close to their loved ones while serving a prison sentence.
Research Analyst
Makeda Telesford
Makeda is a Research Analyst at Dutchess Management and is currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree in Communication and Speech Disorders at Brooklyn College.
Advisor
Bill Baroni
Bill brings more than 20 years of governmental and non-profit experience to Dutchess, where he is involved in identifying solutions to some of the most complex problems that face our diverse clientele.
Investment Analyst
Clé Dupuy
At Dutchess, he helps manage operations for our software incubator partners and conducts preliminary research on new ventures for the company and its clients.
Chief Operating Officer
Anna White
Anna has been the COO at Dutchess Management since March of 2020. Prior to that she worked as the Private Equity Practice Coordinator at Willkie Farr & Gallagher.
Two-and-a-half million people in the United States wake up every morning in a prison. The US incarcerates a larger share of its population than any other country on earth. 95% of all presently incarcerated people will be released at some point.² But unfortunately, just three years later, half will be back in prison.³
Why? One reason is the loss of connection – especially to family members and other loved ones – that happens while someone is incarcerated. The average family can’t afford to take off work, travel hundreds of miles out of state, and cover lodging costs just to visit a loved one for a few limited visitation hours.⁵ So, too many families with incarcerated people disintegrate, causing drastic consequences, including substance abuse, learning and education loss, and mental illness.⁶ These issues are especially acute in the more than 50% of families with incarcerated people which have children under the age of 18.
Thankfully, simple visits between loved ones can prevent or heal much of this damage. Studies show that family visits can reduce recidivism by as much as 50%.⁷ Meaningful contact with parents also reduces behavior problems, criminal activity, and mental and physical problems in children.⁸
The benefits of increased visitation and reduced recidivism do not stop at the personal level. Maintaining connections to family members can help incarcerated people readjust and contribute to society after they’ve paid their debts to it. Lower spending on reoffenders can save states $18 billion per year.⁹ Preserving support networks for incarcerated people thus has significant advantages for everyone.
Fill out a 5-minute form that goes directly to our application review team. We’ll be in touch shortly.
Our travel team will help you coordinate with the prison to confirm your visit and take care of booking travel arrangements.
Enjoy quality time with your loved one!
