Sharon McKinney, executive director of the Texas Incarcerated Families Association, said that TIFA was founded 30 years ago by two brothers who were not familiar with navigating the prison system in Texas. They established a support group after meeting with Brad Livingston, then executive director of TDCJ. McKinney was a guest on a recent episode of the Texas Talks Podcast.

"TIFA is approaching our 30-year anniversary," said McKinney on the Texas Talks Podcast. “We were founded in 1995 by a set of brothers who had a brother incarcerated and knew nothing about the prison system. They decided that they would start a support group for families who had someone incarcerated. So the brothers went and they had a meeting with Brad Livingston, who was the executive director of our TDCJ at the time, and they formed a relationship.”

“There wasn't anything like that out in the community," said McKinney. “Just two brothers had a brother incarcerated and needed support. They didn't know anything about the prison system. It was the first time the family had come across anything prison-wise. And we grew from there."

McKinney serves as the executive director of the Texas Incarcerated Families Association (TIFA), where she leads educational initiatives like the New Family Workshop for those with relatives entering the Texas Department of Criminal Justice and the Parole Workshop for families nearing parole eligibility. TIFA offers its members educational resources, advocacy platforms, and organizing opportunities through regular chapter meetings, an online platform, a quarterly newsletter, and direct access to the executive director.

Texas Talks podcast is hosted by Brad Swail. The weekly show is focused on public policy in the state of Texas, with insights from the people and organizations that influence it.

The podcast is available on Simple Cast and YouTube.