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Texas inmates spread Christmas cheer with yarn and crochet hooks

KTRK

Christmas was made just a little bit brighter this year for some low-income children, thanks to gifts from an unexpected source.

Some of the worst offenders in Texas prisons worked hard this holiday to crochet stuffed animals for needy kids.

The inmates made for a surprising image: These hardened men in their white prison jumpsuits, many of them muscled and heavily tattooed, bent carefully over their yarn and poking away with their crochet hooks.

As KTRK reports, inmate Mike Ramos, says crocheting helps him focus on his future. “I really start reflecting on what I need to be doing and why I shouldn't be here and where I should be.” For every 10 animals the inmates create, they’re able send one to a family member.

Inmate Louis Wendell said he was making a stinky little bear for his mother. “I stuffed him in a little box,” he said. “It was a little tiny box and I stuffed him in there. I hope she gets it.”