Through gifts in Wills, Lisa found calm, hope and a way to rebuild

On her 40th birthday, Lisa Newman was beginning an 18-month prison sentence for dealing drugs. Today, aged 52 and living in Gloucestershire, she’s a qualified addiction recovery coach, a public speaker, and a business owner. But back then, life felt completely out of control.

While in prison, Lisa came across The Prison Phoenix Trust, a charity that supports people in custody through the tools of yoga, meditation and spiritual connection. Since 1988, the charity has helped thousands of people in prisons across the UK and Ireland find calm, hope and self-belief in the most difficult circumstances.

Lisa reached out to the charity and not long after, she heard from Caroline, a volunteer mentor. What started with a letter turned into a lifeline; made possible in part by people who leave gifts in Wills. Caroline offered encouragement and guidance by post, along with yoga books and CDs tailored to Lisa’s situation, all funded through the support that legacy giving helps to provide. “She helped me practise yoga and meditation in my tiny cell. But more than that, she gave me emotional support,” Lisa says. “I could write about my guilt, my shame – and someone actually listened. It was the first time I felt heard and cared for in years.”

Through gentle guidance, Caroline’s letters helped Lisa find moments of calm and hope, reconnecting with herself emotionally as well as physically – and showing her that change was possible, even inside a prison cell.

Through the generosity of those who leave gifts in their Wills, charities like The Prison Phoenix Trust are able to offer vital support such as in providing prisoners with access to calming, grounding practices that promote healing from the inside out. They help deliver materials, coordinate correspondence, and run classes in prisons across the UK and Ireland. For many people like Lisa, gifts in Wills play a crucial role in offering her hope and healing.

Lisa had struggled for years before entering prison, facing addiction and trauma rooted in early childhood. Despite trying to turn her life around, including studying at university, she relapsed and was eventually sentenced. Lisa’s path to prison began long before her sentence. Misunderstood due to undiagnosed ADHD, she was labelled a troublemaker early on. By 13, she was self-medicating with alcohol, which escalated into heroin use, dangerous relationships, and arrests.

Despite this, she put herself through university and stayed sober for seven years until a relapse led to her imprisonment. “Addiction is progressive. But what I now understand is that trauma stores in the body. You can’t just move on and cope. Healing takes more than words. It takes being still – being present in your body. That’s what yoga and meditation gave me.”

After her release, Lisa stayed in touch with the charity. “When I faced new challenges, I reached out again – and they were still there with kindness and support.”

Today, Lisa runs her own business, supporting people in addiction recovery using an holistic approach. She’s a sober companion, a home detox specialist, and a global speaker on trauma and healing. “I pinch myself that I get to live this life now,” she says. “I’ve just bought my first house. I travel for work. I love simple things, like gardening. I feel free.”

Reflecting on the generosity of those who have left a gift in their Will to support the charity, Lisa says: “To think that someone saw beyond the prison walls and cared—it means everything. That gift changed my life.”

Now, years later, she’s determined to give back that same hope to others. “Because someone believed in me, I’m here,” Lisa says. “And I want to help others believe in themselves too.”

For anyone thinking of leaving a gift in their Will, Lisa knows just how much it matters: “Your money helps people in ways no one else can. In a very dark place, you’re giving them a bit of light.”