McALESTER — There are “Angels” at McAlester’s Oklahoma State Penitentiary. And those Angels will be putting a smile on the faces of more than 30 children over the Christmas holiday season.

Since 2009, OSP has sponsored the Angel Tree Program — organized by volunteers and funded solely by donations — to ensure that OSP staff and their families are able to enjoy a very merry Christmas each year.

This year, the Angel Tree program continues to sponsor OSP staff members and their families.

“This is a continuing effort to focus on the family of staff members working here,” said OSP Warden Randy Workman. “And to have more family orientation and interaction for staff.”

“This program was started in the time that Warden Workman has been here,” said Warden’s Assistant Terry Crenshaw. “Along with a number of other programs that help boost staff and offender morale.”

In 2009, the Angel Tree program sponsored 14 OSP staff families, including 36 children. In 2010, the program assisted eight families, including 21 children. And this year, the Angel Tree program is expected to sponsor 14 families, including 32 children. “And that number may increase by Christmas,” Workman said.

Deputy Warden Linda Morgan has served as the chair of the Angel Tree Program for three years now and says that she truly enjoyed going out and buying all the gifts for the children this year. “Deputy Morgan is the Santa shopper and has put many hours into organizing this project,” the warden said. “I can’t thank her enough.”

“Look at these rod and reel combo sets,” Crenshaw told the News-Capital. “Aren’t they great?”

Morgan was able to purchase 30 of the rod and reel combo sets, each of which included absolutely everything a child would need to enjoy a day of fishing.

Thirty winter coats were also purchased with the Angel Tree funding, Warden Workman said, “which have already been distributed to staff and their families.”

The funding for this program does not come out of the Department of Corrections budget, Workman said. Every cent that is spent on the Angel Tree program comes from “Angels” — staff donations and money given from the Bethany Freewill Baptist Church out of Broken Arrow.

“This program has been set up to support the OSP staff, and their families,” Warden Workman said. “I’ve had people come to me and say that if it wasn’t for OSP and the Angel Tree program, their children wouldn’t have had a Christmas this year.” Simply hearing that, the warden said, is a wonderful feeling and extremely rewarding.

The Bethany Freewill Baptist Church is also sponsoring the OSP staff Christmas dinner, Workman said. “The dinner will feed over 350 staff members.”

“And the staff here at OSP has held fundraisers throughout the year to raise money for the Angel project, as well as the OSP yearbook project,” Workman said.

The yearbook committee at OSP has worked all year long to compile pictures and information to create an OSP yearbook, one of which will be given as a Christmas gift to every OSP staff member this year.

“This is the first time a facility such as ours has done anything like this — a yearbook,” Crenshaw said. “Since Warden Workman has been here, we have worked on a special project each year to benefit the staff at OSP.”

The yearbook includes pictures of all the staff members, as well as pictures from all the special events held at OSP, including: The employee appreciation dinner, the Thanksgiving meal, the OSP Christmas gathering, the 4th of July picnic, the Hard-Times chili cook-off, the OSP fall festival including the trunk-or-treat for kids, military spotlights, OSP employees’ longevity awards for service and the OSP Easter egg hunt for children on the Warden’s front lawn.

The yearbook even includes pictures of OSP’s two K-9 dogs, Blacky and Sam. The yearbook was put together by OSP’s “Memories Committee,” including members Charlie Young, Brian Joyce, Josie Pettit, Vince Parsons, Judy Cardenas, Warden Workman, Neamyra Riddle and Regina Etchinson. The collection of memories, funded by National Oilwell, the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma and other contributors, will be distributed to more than 350 OSP employees over the Christmas holiday.

Next Christmas, the warden is hoping to have completed an OSP history book to give each staff member for Christmas. The book is expected to include a history of OSP “from the eyes of the employees,” Workman said.

Working on the history book project our three of OSP’s very own historians: Former employees Steve Adams and John East, as well as current OSP employee Dale Cantrell.

Although administration at OSP is already planning projects for next year’s Christmas celebration, there are still more treats planned for this year’s holiday season, the warden said.

“Santa will be here,” he said.

On the evening of Dec. 16, OSP administration has organized a Christmas gathering for staff members and their families. Santa Claus is expected to arrive at the party and will listen to every attending child’s extra special Christmas wish. Santa will be taking pictures with children as well.

“We are excited to be able to give back to the OSP family,” Crenshaw said. Working in corrections can be physically and emotionally draining for staff, it is a dangerous job, and “we want all the staff at OSP to know that we appreciate all that they give to OSP and the Department of Corrections.”

To donate to the Angel Tree or History Book projects, contact Crenshaw at 918-302-4615 or terry.crenshaw@doc.state.ok.us.



Contact Rachel Petersen at rpetersen@mcalesternews.com.