Who all has loved ones housed at Holliday? My son was just informed by committee that he will be staying there for awhile. His intake is up in about a week or less. They are going to transfer him from the intake cell to a regular cell, give him a job and he is going to sign up for whatever classes they offer.
I would like as much info as possible. What all classes do they offer? What are the cells like? What is the general atmosphere there? I have to say Im not at all disapointed at him being there because its only a 4-5 hr drive and Im very familiar with the area.

My husband's there - he's been there since December. He works in the laundry room. They don't have cells, they have dorms. I'm not sure about what classes Holliday offers. It's a decent unit though. I enjoy visiting him there.

just found out today that my babe got transeferred there, and i have no way of contacting him not even letters

once you know what his TDCJ number is you can write him there at
295 IH-45 North
Huntsville, Tx 77320

He will get your letters, but it may take awhile for him to be able to write back. Took 2 1/2 wks to get my first letter

Our son is there. Whenever we visit most of the guards are very nice and respectful to us. Get there as early as you can to avoid the wait.

yeah I'm always there at 7:30 - 8 am in the morning on the Saturdays I go to visit. Any later than 8:30 and it could possibly be too late and you'll have to wait 2 hours for the next set of contact visits.

I was at the gate at 7:30 yesterday and there was already 6 - 7 cars lined up.

wow! i guess its "spend the night in a motel" on Friday nights for me!

yeah I'm always there at 7:30 - 8 am in the morning on the Saturdays I go to visit. Any later than 8:30 and it could possibly be too late and you'll have to wait 2 hours for the next set of contact visits.

I was at the gate at 7:30 yesterday and there was already 6 - 7 cars lined up.


What about non-contact visits? What time should I arrive for those?

Usually the non-contacts aren't that crowded. So you don't have to be there right at opening.

My son has been there 2 1/2 weeks, when I called there I was told he couldn't have visitors for 6 weeks, how do we know when we can visit? Do you just show up and hope they will allow him to visit with us?

No, i would keep calling..When my husband was moved to Hollliday, he couldnt get visits at all because i was told holliday is now a transfer facility and most of the inmates dont stay there long..So,if your son will b there permantely, i would just keep calling..Never just show up for a visit, because it hurts when they tell you NO !!

I was told to call on Fridays, early afternoon because the computer systems are updated on Fridays and thats where they look for the information to see if he is eligible or not.

My husband called me last night and told me they just called his name to get transferred to Holliday and he would be transferred early in the morning. I was kind of excited since that meant he would only be an hour away vs. 3 hours at the last jail he was at...but that meant no more phone calls :( which I really was looking forward to when I went into labor so he could "be" there when the baby was born and hear his first cry..but eh..at least he's closer..anyways...my questions were:
A) Do they have phones at Holliday & when will they be able to use them??
B) How much money should I send him when I find out what his TDCJ # is??
C) Do they have that jpay e-mail thing where you can send a letter via e-mail and he'll get it that same day?
D) How is the actual prison & what can he expect being there?
E) He has a 3 year sentence, and only has to serve a minimum of 2 before he's eligible for parole...he has 4 months of county time that the judge says will count..so in ya'lls opinion..would he just stay put at Holliday or will he get transferred??

Thanks for the answers!

A) Do they have phones at Holliday & when will they be able to use them?? - yes they do have phones. However, my husband and I don't do the phone thing because I only have a cell phone, and they can only call to land lines. Go check out the TX phone forum for more info.

B) How much money should I send him when I find out what his TDCJ # is?? - My husband's mom takes care of his bank account, so I can't give you an accurate answer on this. It's however much you feel like putting in there. She puts $50 in Matthew's account each month from a bank account of his own (she has POA).

C) Do they have that jpay e-mail thing where you can send a letter via e-mail and he'll get it that same day? - yes - and it's quite nifty. although if you send an email after 2 pm, it gets there the next day.

D) How is the actual prison & what can he expect being there? - My husband has been there since last December and has never had any problems with any other inmates. There is the occasional fighting and I think there are gangs, but my guy doesn't get involved in any of that stuff, nor does he attract attention to himself. He likes some of the food, but some of it is nasty. Some of the C/O's have been jerks, but nothing too terribly bad. I've never had any problems with the C'O's at visitation. They have all been friendly enough and a few even remember and know who I am by now. My husband says it's pretty boring there at Holliday. He did manage to get a job in the laundry room so that keeps him busy as well as writing letters to me and reading.

E) He has a 3 year sentence, and only has to serve a minimum of 2 before he's eligible for parole...he has 4 months of county time that the judge says will count..so in ya'lls opinion..would he just stay put at Holliday or will he get transferred?? - there's no rhyme or reason on if they move your loved one or not. My guy is serving a 19 mo term for a parole violation and has managed to stay put at holliday since being moved there from county. He's the only person I know of who's stayed there as long as this. All you can do is continue to check the inmate locator each week and/or call the unit up on Fridays before going there to visit.