Wide-eyed and looking all around, I sat with Carri Williams at our assigned Table #9. Security guards were about 15-feet away. Cameras were active. To say the least, the rounds of razor wire and high fencing were intimidating at the Corrections Center for Women in Purdy, Washington.
“This is the first time I’ve ever been in a prison,” I shared with Carri. She laughed, and replied: “Mine, too.”
Carri has been in prison for 12 years, and after my month-long wait to pass a government background check, it was a special day to see this woman face-to-face for the first time — a woman who loves the Lord dearly; who remains faithful to her husband and family; and who has endured so much injustice. (Her husband Larry is incarcerated on the eastern side of Washington State.)
The story of the Williams family — a homeschooling Christian family of nine kids — made national and international headlines, and the local media once described Carri as perhaps “the most hated woman in all of Skagit County.” Such a statement is not hard to believe, given what the media told us about her, but I praise God for removing the scales from my eyes.
We shared a couple of hours together, along with her dear friend Kay Nelson. Filming, of course, is not allowed inside the prison, nor can you bring anything else inside. The dress code is strict, and the “pat down” and computerized full-body scanner is top-notch. “Hands up . . . turn slowly around . . . Show me your pockets . . . ”
Carri Williams is an inspiration. I have never seen first-hand such strong faith amidst such hardship, and you can experience her faith in her own writing found in the amazing book Harshly Condemned. It tells the story of what the jury never heard, what the public never heard, and what the media never reported.
At the end of the allotted visiting time, Kay and I hugged her goodbye, and I shook her hand. I walked out of the room, and then Security made us pause and wait. Behind me, a huge, very thick sliding door began to close, and then it locked shut and sealed. But I could still see Carri through the glass. I waved again, and then turned around, the last one in the group of visitors.
Tears filled my eyes.
✝️ ✝️ ✝️
From the video “Visiting Carri Williams in Prison”:
I praise God for removing the scales from my eyes in order to see the truth about what happened to Carri and Larry. At great length, I have researched this case, and I have spoken with them and emailed with them from prison. I count it a blessing and a privilege to know them. They have become my friends. Both remain faithful to each other and to their family. Both remain committed to our Lord and Savior. It’s time to reunite this loving and patriotic family — and free Carri and Larry.
To learn what the media did not report and what the jury never heard, see the book Harshly Condemned by our friend Bruce E. Hawkins.
• Video:
Hope for the Williams Family (Part 1) • Article: “Hope for the Williams Family”