Beckyâs Story Inside Incarceration (Pt. 1)
Pelipost is launching a new series devoted to the stories of those impacted inside and outside of incarceration called PeliPeople. In honor of this series launch we are sharing our own story firstâŚ
A message from our CEO: Joseph Calderon
If there is one truth I can share with you, it is this: Â there is redemption and success on the other side of doing time. Â Our story is proof. Pelipost was founded in 2015 by myself, Joe Calderon, and my mom, Becky. We truly believe our success wouldnât have been possible if it werenât for our personal experiences of one, having an incarcerated loved one; and two, BEING an incarcerated loved one. Â Most donât know the story that led to the start of Pelipost and we believe now is the greatest time to share. So we will begin here with: Beckyâs Story Inside Incarceration.
The Beginning of it All
âWhen you feel the weight of reality that each year may be your last⌠You fight for your life, as best as you can.â
â Becky Calderon
Imagine with me for a moment⌠Youâre married and just gave birth to your first child. Life is good. Motherhood is magical. You have this beautiful little baby and you canât help but dream of what life will look like with your family in 10, 20, 50 years even. THEN⌠your baby is one month old and youâre in the doctorâs office being given the heaviest news of your life. This is where my story begins, thankfully, this is not where my story ends.
In February of 1989, one month after my sonâs (Joseph) birth, I received a terminal cancer diagnosis. All of my hopes of one day having a big family came to an end that day. Another pregnancy would end my life, so Joe was an instant only child. The doctors didnât expect me to live past Joeâs kindergarten year. Am I now ever so grateful they were wrong. I spent the next 12 years going through 13 surgeries, radiation, chemo, fighting for my life. I did all of this while also juggling motherhood, marriage, and work. It was not an easy journey, but it was worth it.
When you feel the weight of reality that each year may be your last⌠You fight for your life, as best as you can. At least, in my case, I did. I decided that my son was going to remember me no matter what. It was my ultimate purpose to give him the best childhood any kid could ask for.
The Cancer Returns
The cancer came back during Joeâs middle school years. In my desperation to provide a more memorable experience for my family in my âlast daysâ, I made some poor decisions. These choices would result in a shortcut to fund a higher quality of life. We started taking more vacations, buying gifts, trying to create as many happy memories as possible. It took about 5 years before my choices caught up to me.
By the time everything came out, Joseph was in his first year of college. Contrary to my doctorâs prognosis, I had lived way past his kindergarten graduation at this point, and the life I had funded in those earlier, memorable, years had finally caught up to me. We lost our home during the recession. My marriage had collapsed. The body I was given, wouldnât stop failing me. Legal troubles were overflowing and I became an alcoholic. Thank God, Joeâs dad was the best dad in the world and remained Joeâs rock through it all.
Grave Before the Gavel
From charge to sentencing, the process took roughly three years. I just wanted to die, at that point. During those three long years, life was an intoxicated blur. In my mind, I thought I kept it all hidden and concealed from Joe, but he was too smart for that. Even still, he never turned his back on me. He couldnât comprehend the powerless battle I was fighting with cancer, coupled with the disease of alcoholism. However, he never stopped encouraging me to fight with all I had. He knew I loved him more than life but I was losing the perseverance to stay in the game.
I kept putting off my court dates and delaying the inevitable. In reality, I was expecting to meet the grave before meeting the judgeâs gavel. For some reason, my life kept ticking. What Joe and I didnât realize, at the time, was how prison would completely save my life, instead of helping to end itâŚ
Want to read more about Beckyâs Story Inside Incarceration? Sign-up for the Pelipost email newsletter! You will first to be to notified once we release the next part of our story soon!
Donât forget to send your incarcerated loved ones photos this holiday season! You can download the Pelipost app through the Apple App Store or Google Play Store.
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