Jay’Aina Patton
Jay’Aina Patton was just three years old when her father, Antoine Patton fell foul of the law, leading to his incarceration for gun possession.
The only way she could communicate with her father was via “snail mail”—an ordinary U.S. postal mail which is said to lack the speed, efficiency and often “the personality of modern communication tools like email, social media and text messaging.”
The grueling experiences Patton went through just to have a relationship with her father when he was in prison would motivate her to design and develop a much needed mobile application, “Photo Patch”, to help children maintain healthy relationships with their parents who are serving time in prison. The app has gained nearly 2,000 users and has been downloaded over 10,000 times since its launch.