Our History
Aid to Inmate Mothers (AIM) Inc., was founded in 1987 by Church Women United, The Alabama Prison Project, The Alabama Department of Corrections and a group of committed volunteers who discovered that many women in prison never saw their children. AIM’s founders recognized that children of incarcerated parents needed regular contact with their mothers, yet often couldn’t visit because their guardians were unwilling or unable to take them. In 1990, AIM separated from the Alabama Prison Project and became an independent nonprofit agency.
With a strong statewide volunteer network, AIM continues to provide monthly visits for children to reunite with their incarcerated mothers. Caregivers report that their children’s emotional health improves when they see their mothers–helping them perform better in every aspect of their daily lives. Our agency has prioritized the visitation program from the start. Thanks to the ongoing assistance from our volunteers and sponsors, we have broadened our services for families. These include a monthly storybook program, summer camp location assistance, and family outreach support. We also assist with back-to-school supplies, birthday gifts, and Christmas gifts for children enrolled in our program. Mothers in the program attend parenting and life skill classes. Our services reach out to mothers at Tutwiler Prison, Tutwiler Annex, Birmingham Work Release, and the Montgomery Women’s Facility.
We have seen a consistent rise in the number of yearly participants who are imprisoned in Alabama’s women’s penitentiaries. With Alabama’s prison system accommodating over 24,000 individuals, around 2,200 are women. Women make up about 9% of the total prison population, and we engage with several of them through the various programs we provide at the prison.
Many of these women have faced numerous challenges and adversities in their lives, leading them down paths that resulted in incarceration. Despite their circumstances, we believe in the power of rehabilitation and providing them with opportunities to turn their lives around. Through our programs, we aim to support their rehabilitation and empower all those incarcerated in Alabama prisons with valuable skills and education that can pave the way for a brighter future. We offer life skill classes, reentry, and aftercare assistance to all women incarcerated in Alabama prisons.
In 2011, started a project that we had always dreamed of—a transitional home for women leaving prison. In 2012, AIM received a grant from the City of Montgomery to purchase the building. In June 2013, we became the proud owners of 660 Morgan Avenue. We have since moved all of our offices to the building.
