It all began the week after Kolasinski's one-week stay in January at the Orange County Jail after she was charged with operating a restaurant without a permit and blocking Orange County health inspectors. She was also sentenced to three years probation.
The 85-year-old received a letter from an inmate she met while on the inside who was looking for spiritual guidance or to discuss reported abuses.
"Thank the Lord for sending me to jail or I would never have known any of this was happening," Kolasinski said.
Now six months later, Kolasinski fields 10 letters a day on average, 40-50 at heavier times. She has responded to nearly every one.
The women are sent reading materials from the group, or money to buy hygiene products since they are required to pay for supplies such as shampoo.
Kolasinski says she feels God has appointed her to tend to this flock who have been left to fend for themselves. The deck has been stacked against these girls, she said.
For Tena, that definitely seemed the case, with a mother serving 16 months in Chowchilla Prison for petty theft with a prior conviction, and a father serving 22 years at Calipatria State Prison for shooting in an inhabited dwelling, a charge which counted as his second strike.
Roughly 24 hours after being let loose, Tena was required to be seated in front of her probation officer with a living plan by 9 a.m. Thursday or else could have faced going back in, she said.
"They make it impossible for you to get back up on your feet," said Kerry Parker, a Piecemakers staff member. "You pay for your own punishment," she added, in reference to the monthly fees required for probation, usually putting many of the inmates further in debt before they leave their cell.
