Centinela raises over $18k for youth sports

September 3, 2024

Warden Guzman, Chief Deputy Warden Esquivel and the incarcerated advisory council present a check to the El Centro Youth Football Association.

Centinela State Prison’s incarcerated population along with its advisory council recently held an institutional food sale, raising over $18,600 for youth sports.

Partnering with the local Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant, incarcerated individuals were able to order meals for the fundraiser.

The amount raised was equally split into two separate donations to organizations helping fun city league youth sports. The first half went to El Centro Youth Football Association, represented by board president Todd Evangelist. The other half went to El Centro Little League, represented by board president Ivan Murillo.

“I want to thank my peers and the staff who helped make this possible, including Warden Guzman. We all stepped up,” said one of the incarcerated individuals who organized the food sale. “It feels good to know that I was able to help somebody in the community.”

Warden Fidencio Guzman is a supporter of these fundraisers, seeing it benefit the population as well as the community.

“I want to thank the population for giving back to the local community. Youth sports organizations are critical in shaping a child’s life,” Guzman said. “In return for their generosity, the population was able to feel some normalization to outside the prison walls.”

Warden Guzman is committed to the normalization foundational pillar of the California Model.

Learn more about the California Model on the CDCR website.

The incarcerated population said they look forward to continuing their partnership with Centinela State Prison staff and the local community with more fundraisers in the future.

Submitted by Lt. S. Cazares