Books Behind Bars: Giving the Gift of Reading to People Serving Time

Lincoln, NE – On September 15th, Daniel Windham rolled up to the Regional Center to donate another car load of books to the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services (NDCS).

Windham began collecting and donating books in 2022 when he decided to become more minimalist about his personal book collection. Though he does not currently work as a librarian, he has a Masters in Library Science and originally planned to open a bookstore when he retired. He reached out to NDCS to discover there was an opportunity: old and torn up books had to be recycled, so there was a continual need for donations to refill each of the prison libraries.

“Since we moved to a small house and I’m many years away from retirement, I wanted to donate the books I could easily replace to those in need rather than hoard them in my garage for maybe someday,” Windham said. “Those books are better served being read by someone right now.”

While going through the process of minimizing his own book collection and choosing a good cause to donate them to, Windham welcomed friends, family, church members, neighbors, and colleagues to do the same. He quickly became overwhelmed with books and had to plan additional trips.

“It became so popular, we had to do it a second and now third time,” he said. “Most people have extra books on their shelves that they aren’t going to read anymore. It’s a good idea to re-home those books somewhere helpful. It feels good to have a positive impact on the community.”

Windham is passionate about criminal justice reform, serving as a volunteer with his local NAACP chapter and the Lancaster County Libertarian Party. He decided that donating books was a way to take direct action. For incarcerated people, non-fiction books provide educational opportunities while many fiction books contain messages of hope and redemption that can help inspire people whether they are still serving their sentence or about to be released.

“The prison system is a mess, so how can the average person help when the problem seems overwhelming? I am reminded every time we do this that one small act of kindness can make an incredible difference for incarcerated people and their families.”

Daniel Windham is a resident of Weeping Water. He has donated around 1,000 books in total through his volunteer charitable project called “Books Behind Bars.”

NDCS accepts books in good condition that will be distributed to any of its correctional facilities, including the youth facilities. In particular, Books Behind Bars is seeking books written for most reading levels, popular fiction, and young adult or children’s books that can be additionally used by families visiting their loved ones.

Law books must be current (written within the last 5 years). Martial arts books are not accepted for donation.

If you are interested in donating books to NDCS, contact Daniel at dawindha@gmail.com by titling your email “Books Behind Bars” and he will connect with you to pick them up for his next donation around January 2024.

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