It wasn’t a Friday like any other. The boy’s day began at 6:30 a.m. with the familiar ringing of his alarm clock, waking him up for another day of school. But this afternoon, he and his mother would drive to Bremen-Oslebshausen — to the prison where his father was serving his sentence.
He hadn’t seen his father in months. The regular visits were difficult for him. The cold atmosphere, the guards, the sterile rooms — all of it filled him with unease. The prison scared him. But today was no ordinary visit. Today was “Game with Mom and Dad” day.
A day that marks the conclusion of a journey, we call it a project, the GWMD project to be precise, carried out in prison by Hoppenbank e.V., a COPE member in Germany, which has proved to be a very effective tool for creating quite intense moments of strengthening and maintaining the bond between children and their imprisoned parents.
His mother picked him up after school. Shortly before the start, they passed through the prison gate and entered the waiting room for visitors. Five families had gathered there – mothers with children of all ages, from babies, the youngest is 5 months old, in their arms to teenagers like him. There was a quiet excitement in the air.
A social worker from Hoppenbank greeted them and led them through the corridors and across the courtyard. The boy noticed something reassuring: the staff had their own keys. They were not followed by uniformed guards. This small detail made the place seem less like a prison.
The fathers were already waiting in the gym. His father stood there in full sportswear, smiling. Benches had been set up in an adjoining room and snacks and drinks had been provided. But the boy wasn’t interested in food. He wanted to play.
“The time with Dad is so nice! And we can try everything in the hall!”
— a child
For the next three hours, they ran, jumped, and laughed. Volleyball, soccer, basketball, badminton — they played everything. His father looked at him with pride and surprise. “You’ve got quite a throw now,” he said. And it was true. The boy had grown. He was now almost as tall as his father.
They sweated, joked, and swore playfully. His mother watched from the sidelines and smiled broadly. In that moment, surrounded by movement and laughter, the boy forgot where they were. He forgot the walls, the uniforms, the silence of separation.
For a few precious hours, they were just a family again.
“I ate lots of cheesecake with Dad!”
— a child
After three and a half hours of almost non-stop play, they had tried to make up for everything they had missed in recent weeks. Game after game, laugh after laugh – it was as if time had bent to give them back what had been taken from them.
“I have more time with my son than ever since I’ve been here. I can get to know him better and build a bond”
— an imprisoned father
As the afternoon drew to a close, everyone gathered for a final circle. The Hoppenbank staff thanked the families warmly and said goodbye. The boy felt a familiar pain – how quickly beautiful moments seemed to pass, especially in a situation like theirs.
It was time to part ways again. His father had to return to his cell, and he and his mother were about to head home. The farewell was quiet, heavy, but also filled with something else – something lighter.
“The time with my family is very important and valuable to me. I am very grateful”
— an imprisoned father
“Game with Mum and Dad” is a European project coordinated by Children of Prisoners Europe (COPE) for the 36 member organisations of its European network (in 22 countries).
The project follows the model created by Italian member Bambinisenzasbarre, which has been organising it in Italian prisons since 2015. The model focuses on the right of the child to maintain regular and quality contact with both parents, including those in prison, as enshrined in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (20.11.1989).
The GWMD tool has proven to be a powerful means of maintaining and improving the relationship between imprisoned parents and their children, and is also capable of changing the culture of prison staff at all levels.
