Voices of Release: What Hope is All About
By Sonora Bostian-Posner
FAMM first told Matthew’s story in 2020. Gov. Ralph Northam pardoned Matthew in November 2020. We caught up with his mother, Lavern, and asked her about having Matthew home.
Matthew has been home a year and three months now. My perspective has changed a whole lot in general because of Matthew and because he’s autistic. I see the world through his eyes, and I see the beauty of the world, and I see the disparity of the world. So, with that being said, my relationship with him has built a bigger or stronger bond because of what he’s gone through.
I would tell mothers who are missing their kids in prison to never lose hope. Don’t lose hope, and keep that hope that fosters love in their hearts alive. There’re always second chances and that’s what hope is all about, second chances in life.
The folks that get second chances, like my son Matthew, they have such strength and resilience, and they should be celebrated like anybody else.
If you’d like to help more people receive a second chance, consider giving a special gift to FAMM.
Sonora Bostian-Posner is FAMM’s Director of Digital Communications.
