Foundation

I am in the process of filing the materials necessary for creating a 501(c)(3) non-profit in Whit's memory. The working name is the Whitney Holwadel Smith Foundation, though "Fund" may end up replacing "Foundation." The purpose of the organization is to provide financial assistance to former inmates from the federal system for the purpose of post-secondary school education - college, junior college etc. I will likely limit it to refugees from the federal system, since that was Whit's experience and I have first-hand experience with the lying, abuse and injustices those people have had to endure from Federal Bureau of Prisons employees. A part of the mission may also be to create public awareness of these issues.

This is something new to me; I have no previous experience and am learning along the way. A non-profit corporation requires a Board consisting of 3 directors, and I am in the process of recruiting those people.

Among the decisions that need to be made are how to make the fund more or less self-sustaining, so that we do not exhaust all the funds at one time and have to look to new donors each time to replenish. We also need to identify ways to publicize the existence of the Foundation, and solicit donors.

Please check in now and again to see what the status is. And please feel free to offer suggestions, ideas, help, comments, whatever.

Thanks,
Jeff

Legal update

I have contacted a new attorney who is considering taking the case in the matter of Whit's death. If he agrees to handle it, then a suit for wrongful death will be filed against the Federal Bureau of Prisons. My present attorney, who filed the FTCA (Federal Tort Claims Act) claim but has taken a new position and closed his private practice, will see me through the end of that process. It is anticipated that the BOP will deny that claim, thereby opening the door to the courts. Just to clarify, an FTCA claim asks for a large damages award based on an assertion of wrongful death (gross negligence etc.). The BOP can come back and say screw you, go away; or here's money for funeral expenses, go away; or theoretically even a larger sum up to the statutory limit. In any case there would be no admission of culpability on their part, and no additional facts or information concerning the circumstances of Whit's death or conditions/events leading up to it would be uncovered. That's what I am really after: the truth. The difficulty is that the BOP will literally lie over and over again, in ways large and small, they will destroy evidence, and perjure themselves in an attempt to hide the truth. No, I'm not making that up. Guards will lie, wardens will lie. Ask ANY attorney who has dealt with the federal government. And I've already experienced it repeatedly over the past 4 years in my own dealings with them.

As always, thanks to all of you who keep coming back to Whit's blog. It means more to me than you could possibly know.

Jeff

mrs rimoldi

This post is actually the same as a comment I just left in response to one made by "mrs rimoldi" to my post of May 8, but I think it deserves more prominent placement as a separate entry addressed to all Whit's readers:

mrs rimoldi,

I can't tell you how much your comment means to me. Whit himself saw his blog writing as having a three-fold purpose: to entertain, to expose the horrors and injustices of life in a federal prison, and to find his own voice in the process. Responses like yours confirm that he accomplished all three of these in a way and with an impact that has never been done before. The third part - finding his voice - was key in gaining self-understanding. As he began to see how his voice resonated in the world at large, it reassured him that he was in fact a worthy human being with something to offer the world. That, combined with unwavering love and support from some family and certain friends, had allowed him to see a future for himself after incarceration, and he was making plans and ready to go home. Tragically, the horrors and injustices he experienced and was writing about became overwhelming, even for someone as unbelievably strong - and loved - as he was. 

Now there is nothing left but his legacy. Which makes it all the more consoling to me, his father, to see that Whit's words are still having an impact on others in prison, their families, and those with no connection to the American penal system but with the sensitivity to recognize what a beautiful soul and spirit he was - and is. And it is only thanks to people like you, who take the time to write, that I can feel consoled. Thank you from the bottom of my heart, what's left of it.

Jeff

Thank you...

... to new readers from West Virginia, Norristown, Kealakekua, Seattle and Hermosa Beach, for taking the time to read so many of Whit's pieces. As always, please feel free to comment or PM me.

No, I have no idea who you are, the stat counter I added - to give Whit an idea of how many readers he had and where they live - simply tells me where the server is located. Now it helps me to know that people are still finding SuperFriends, and hopefully that they are finding it rewarding, even inspiring.

Also a sincere thank you to Prison Talk for being a channel for Whit to have been discovered early in his blog writing by a lot of really great people. Even today he is finding new readers from the thread that Nina began when she learned of his passing.

Jeff