What we do
LifeLines supports and befriends people on death row in the United States, through letter writing and email. It is the first established organisation of its kind. LifeLines has gone from humble beginnings in 1988 in Cambridge to spread both nationally and internationally, with members all over the world.
LifeLines News
Lifelines News
The Voice, 21 July 2025. “Even with the knowledge of the crime my penfriend was convicted […]
Story by Ian Sinclair, Morning Star, 9 December 2024. Ian Sinclair talks to BILL BREEDEN, a […]
While most of our members write to one penfriend at a time, two of our members, […]
Story by Sian Elvin, Metro, 1 January 2023. ‘Imagine you’re convicted. You then spend 15 or 20 […]
An in-depth interview with Robin Konrad (Chair of the National Habeas Institute) and Beth McOwat (LifeLines writer).
Our conferences are always special, but this year was the first online Zoom conference we have ever […]
For the past 18 months, Mary Hardiman has been writing to a penpal who lives more than 4,500 miles away from her Stockport home.
Wilbert Rideau spent 44 years behind bars. Now he’s campaigning for society to help prisoners start a new life.
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Member Testimonials
Member since 2002
“LifeLines opened up a whole new world to me, and I have made many good friends through it, on both sides, and met some fantastic like-minded people. So to anyone reading this who is still thinking about joining, my advice is to go ahead, it can be frustrating at times but the friendships we make are well worth it.”
Member since 2008
"Sometimes we might not feel we’re saying or doing the right things for our friends on the row, but it could well mean much more than we know – and that’s why we can’t stop."
Member since 2004
"I think it’s crucial for people on death row to know that they are not forgotten. We, and they, should never, ever, give up hope."
Member since 2018
"Becoming part of Lifelines has opened me up to a wonderful community of kind and caring people with the same values as myself… It is such a rewarding and enriching experience, I would encourage anyone thinking of applying to be a friend to someone on death row to go for it."
Member since 2016
"I wasn't sure whether I could be as open minded as I wanted to be - whether it was really possible for me to accept someone for who they are now, uncoloured by what they've done in the past. Joining LifeLines gave me the opportunity to find out that I can. It's helped me just as much as it's helped my penfriend."
Member since 2013
"I’ve been writing to two friends for many years…Our relationship is non judgmental, whilst they may be guilty of bad things it doesn’t wholly define them."
Member since 2012
"LifeLines has enabled me to give a small part of my time to unambiguously let my pen friend know they are not forgotten. My dream would be one day to watch Dallas Cowboys American football [game together]."