With just 5 shopping days left until Christmas, all of Santa's elves are working overtime, and this year they're getting some help from an unlikely place. It's a woodworking shop at the Corrections Corporation of America prison in South Nashville where the spirit of Christmas is alive and well. At Santa's workshops you expect security to be tight. At this one there are rules that have to be followed, and extra high fences to keep prying eyes from seeing the toys before they're ready.

"I like knowing that they're going to children," says CCA inmate Mathew Bay. "I like knowing that."

All of these toy makers are doing time, but they're as dedicated a group of elves as you'll find, each one with special skills helping them to create amazing doll and firehouses for children at Midstate hospitals and nonprofits.

"Carpentry is my thing," says CCA inmate Wayne Earp. "It's what I do in here and it's what I've done on the streets."

This team of inmates has been cutting, painting, gluing and clear coating handmade creations for months, and they're pushing hard to have everything ready for the big day.

"There's no house in here that's built by any one person," says CCA inmate Robert McCombs. "Everybody's got their hands in everything in here. It's a real team effort."

McCombs helped get the ball rolling last year beginning with a doll house made of cardboard. That has morphed into all of this, a labor of love, making spirits there bright.

"You would think they would be sad during Christmas time but their hearts are big right now," says CCA's Elaine Stephens. "They're really excited about the children getting these."

What little girl wouldn't like a doll house like these? Some of these houses are so elaborate. All the doors actually open, all the comforts of home, complete with electricity. The fire houses are new this year, complete with ladder trucks, each one very nearly ready for a new home outside these walls. The CCA inmates will load up their creations for delivery Thursday morning. Stops include Summit Medical Center and the Fannie Battle Child Care Center in East Nashville.
Local Inmates Help to Make Holiday Spirits Bright