Derrick House spent seven years incarcerated in Indiana — nearly his daughter’s entire life. During that time, prison lockdowns often limited visits. He remembers one visit in particular where he was told he couldn’t even hug his daughter.
“She ran up to me like, ‘Daddy!’” he said. “And I turned from her. It hurt me.”
House is now home, reorienting to life outside and spending his first holidays in years with his daughter. But for many, the season is a stark reminder of separation…