Plain language
What is a commissary?
A commissary is the store inside a correctional facility. People buy from it using money held in an official institutional account. It is often the only way to obtain items the facility does not issue.
Product lists, spending limits and deposit rules are set by each facility, not by us.
- Approved food
- Shelf-stable snacks and drink items sold through the facility store.
- Hygiene
- Soap, toothpaste, shampoo, deodorant and other permitted personal care items.
- Writing supplies
- Paper, envelopes, stamps and pens used to stay in touch with family.
- Permitted necessities
- Other everyday items a facility authorizes on its own approved product list.
Why we exist
Dignity is made of small, ordinary things.
Soap. Stamps. A phone call home. Inside a facility, these ordinary things depend on money in an account — and many people have little or no outside support.
This initiative exists so that a reader buying a book can help cover those basics for someone who has no one else to ask. It is a practical form of respect: no lectures, no conditions, no requirement to share a story you would rather keep private.
We describe people as people. No one here is reduced to a case number or an offense.
How it works
Book sales → 30% allocation → program → eligible recipients
- 01
Book sales
Readers buy titles through Books4Books at ordinary retail. Nothing about a purchase affects any application.
- 02
30% allocation
30% of book-sale proceeds from participating titles is intended for the commissary initiative. Exact accounting terms are being finalized and will be published.
- 03
Program
Applications are received, reviewed against published criteria and verified before any funds are committed.
- 04
Eligible recipients
Support is directed to an eligible person's official institutional trust or commissary account — never to a personal account.
Who can apply
Intended for eligible incarcerated people
Baseline expectations are listed below. Anything not yet confirmed by the program is labelled as pending — we will not publish an eligibility rule we cannot stand behind.
- The person is currently incarcerated in a U.S. prison.
- The facility permits deposits from an outside program through an approved provider.
- The application is complete, accurate and signed by the applicant or an authorized helper.
- Applying is free. No purchase, donation or religious participation is required.
Requires confirmation
Details still being finalized
- Minimum or maximum length of remaining sentence
- Facility types and states included at launch
- Award amount, frequency and annual limits
- Documentation accepted as proof of financial need
- Whether family members or advocates may apply on someone's behalf
Application
One form. Free. Plain questions.
The form asks for your name, prison number, institution and state, your skills or talents, your story, why you are applying and how commissary support would help. Sharing your story publicly is optional and requires your consent.
We never ask for a Social Security number, prison-system login or a personal payment account.
Recipient stories
Stories published only with consent
No stories are published yet. When they are, each one will be shared with written permission, reviewed for privacy, and may be published under a first name or initials at the person's request.
Impact
We report recipients supported, funds allocated, institutions reached and applications received — from verified records only.
Reporting begins with the first closed period. We publish nothing before then.
Transparency
The Books4Books funding relationship
Books4Books sells participating titles. 30% of book-sale proceeds is intended to fund this commissary initiative. The precise accounting basis — what is deducted before the 30% is calculated — is being documented and will be published in full.
Funding reports, allocation statements and program updates are published here as each reporting period closes and the figures are verified.
Support the mission
Every book bought carries something further.
The simplest way to support this work is to buy a participating book. 30% of book-sale proceeds is intended for the commissary initiative.
FAQ
Questions people actually ask
Contact
Talk to a person.
Questions from applicants, families, chaplains, facility staff, authors and supporters are all welcome. Send us a message and we will reply.
Go to the contact page