Kylan’s Light

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Lebanon, TN
Kylan’s Light

To bring dignity, rehabilitation and reintegration planning for incarcerated residents of TN

08/18/2026

When we say it we are just grieving parents but when the DA’s office is sounding the alarm bells…then it becomes truth. We are grateful to those speaking this truth and telling these horrific stories that affect offenders and staff alike.

08/12/2026

This is easily one of my favorite pictures of Kylan. We were at Old Hickory Lake close to where we lived at the time. He was fishing for bass but ended up hooking into this huge catfish, if you look close you can see it. It was the last month he was out before he was sent off to his death in a Tennessee prison. We would come to find that this is not an uncommon event when people are forced to forfeit their freedom in Tennessee.

The real shame is that this happens ALL THE TIME. We have allowed CoreCivic to reap record profits, using Tennessee as their own personal ATM machine while simultaneously allowing them to operate with zero accountability. When corporations are disincentivized to operate safe and secure prisons for pure profit we have lost our way…and in the process our soul.

08/04/2026

If you were the TDOC Commissioner for one day and could make 2 changes to our prisons in Tennessee, what would the changes be and why?

07/27/2026

I get messages, letters and emails daily about the damage that is being done through our prison system in Tennessee. Offenders are turned out into a lions den and expected to somehow survive. Wolves among the sheep. The families are often the ones who bear the brunt of the weight that correctional policy wields. The extortion, the violence, r**e and drugs they have to navigate is unimaginable. The tools and programs that are available in some prisons are non existent in others. Health care is today’s topic…

Braylin Burnett was a survivor of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) before he was sentenced to a 5 year prison term. When the family requested help for his condition that resurfaced after his incarceration, they got very little in the way of medical care that would prolong his life.

On July 8, 2025 Braylin lay dying at TriStar Centennial Medical Center, armed guard at the door…his family was denied access to say their final goodbyes by Turney Center Warden James. It was only after the 22 year old Burnett died that they were allowed 10 minutes of visitation, with his lifeless body. He died in a cold hospital bed without the loving comfort of family sharing their love, hugs and kisses with this young man.

I ask you, was his 5 year sentence supposed to be a death sentence? NO…but in many cases that happens here in our Tennessee prison system, just like it happened to my son Kylan. He had just turned 25 years old, not two week before he died. I’m tired of getting messages and letters from families who have had to bury their children because the TDOC was unable to keep them alive. My heart feels that familiar sickening feeling each time I get one of these letters, and I relive my own nightmare. The thing that makes it worse for every family is that the TDOC never acknowledges the responsibility for their part of the preventable deaths. It’s as if they never happened and they could care less. There is no closure for these families, only regret, agony and grief. I pray these families are able to find peace.

07/19/2026

2026 Cedar City Smokeout is in the books. WHAT A DAY!!! WHAT AN EVENT. From the people who came to taste, the teams that cooked, the volunteers, the judges…they all came together in beautiful unison to support Kylan’s Light and our mission of bringing awareness and change to incarceration.

Special thanks to Shawn and Lindsay Smith for bringing the event to life. People have raved about this event since it ended and it’s brought a new backyard sport to the farm. Thank you all for your support and check out our new website and sign up for our newsletter www.kylanslight.org

Feel free to add your pictures and tag yourself.

07/12/2026

TDOC MORTALITY RATES IN 2008 COMPARED TO 2025.

In 2008 there were 69 deaths in TDOC prisons.

In 2025 there were 159 deaths in TDOC prisons.

The number of offenders has remained largely at the same rate over the 17 year gap with slightly more offenders today.

The mortality rate went from right around the national average in 2008, to a 230% increase in 2025 (which is 2.3 times higher than the national average). So what changed? A few ideas; they used to have offenders working and not sitting so idle all day in a cell. Working offenders have more of a sense of purpose. Homicides in 2008 were 0 and in 2025 we had 10 homicides. In 2008 there wasn’t even a category for “undetermined” cause of death…now in 2025 not only does the category exist but there were 39 deaths in the category.

What does this tell you about current Corrections leadership and vision in Tennessee prisons? The men who have forfeited their freedom through incarceration now have the worst chance of survival in prison, as any other time this century and I dare say it’s much longer than that. This is not justice, it’s moral disengagement.

07/08/2026

The countdown is on! 🔥

Join us for the Cedar City Smokeout on Saturday, July 18!

Whether you’re firing up the smoker and competing or just coming to hang out, enjoy some incredible BBQ, and support our mission! Every ticket purchased helps support Kylan’s Light, and we couldn’t do it without this amazing community.

Grab your tickets, learn more about the competition, or sign up to compete at cedarcitysmokeout.com.

Thank you for supporting Kylan’s Light—we can’t wait to see you there! 💙🍖

07/01/2026

This is our friend Morgan. She loves baby Kylan and Kylan’s Light and works with the young people at our church. She gives us hope that the younger generation will be the ones to put humanity back into our criminal justice system and finally see people as people and treat them with humanity and dignity 💕

06/24/2026

Damon Hininger, former CEO of Tennessee-based private prison operator CoreCivic, is interested in being Tennessee’s next U.S. senator.

06/21/2026

Tennessee prisons have 21% of their offenders between ages 18-25. Current numbers for total offenders was 24,340 which is over 5100 total for this age range.

That means we have enough space to help 125 of these young men spread over two different facilities. So if your child or nephew gets goes to prison they have a .024% chance of getting a placement in this program (less than 3%). The pictures below are the result of current Tennessee Corrections policy. A machine that churns people up and spits them out.

If we continue to put young offenders in with institutionalized men we are creating a perpetual prison pipeline. Rather than helping young men without a fully functioning brain we are “locking them up and throwing away the key” in prisons where drugs are rampant. For a state who touts such Christian values, this is not what I believe Jesus “WOULD DO”!!!

Address

142 Public Square Suite 105 E
Lebanon, TN
37087

Website

http://www.kylanslight.org/

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