The White House initiative Champions of Change seeks to honor a number of Americans who have stood out in particular areas of emphasis in order to solicit their ideas in order to maximize the potential for change in our society at the behest of the federal government and the community.
Photo Caption: Attorney General Eric Holder addresses the Fatherhood Champions of Change and attendees at the White House event. The Attorney General shared that the most important job he has had is being a dad to his three children.
Last week, the White House focused on fatherhood in support of President Obama’s Fatherhood & Mentoring Initiative and in commemoration of Father’s Day. Each of the ten Champions of Change honorees contributed incredible work in the fields of fatherhood and low-income men and boys.
The event had an air of enthusiasm, as it was well-attended by many key stakeholders within the cause of advancing fatherhood and mentorship among children without fathers. In addition to the Executive Director of the White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships, Joshua DuBois, Attorney General Eric Holder and Secretary of Education Arne Duncan made appearances to share a few thoughts in honoring the Champions. Check out the event here.
Photo Caption: The 2012 Fatherhood Champions of Change (left to right, top to bottom): Roland C. Warren, Joseph T. Jones, J. Michael Hall, Dr. Michelle Mickle Foster, John Sowers, Carey Casey, R. Stacey Bouchet, Bob Johnson, Jerry Tello, & Dr. Barbara Williams-Skinner
Witnessing the excitement and passion for the fatherhood cause incites moments of reflection. Inspiring our youth by creating a lifelong bond from a father to a child is of paramount importance for the enhanced well-being of our children, and it is a cause that reaches out to us all—as each and every one of us has the potential to have a relationship with our fathers.
But, equally important, is the role we can play as mentors for those children who, due to circumstances beyond their control, do not have fathers in their lives. These children must be reminded that the absence of their fathers is to no fault of their own, and they must know that they are not forgotten.
Father’s Day is a celebration for everyone—be they fathers, mentors, potential mentors, and perhaps most importantly, the children whom are affected by the presence and absence of fatherhood and mentorship. In the words of the Attorney General: “of all the titles I’ve held in my life – lawyer, prosecutor, judge, U.S. Attorney, and, now, Attorney General – the one I’m most proud of is ‘father.’ As fathers, we have an opportunity today, as we do every day, to act responsibly in the lives of our own children. And by setting a good example, each of us can have a significant impact on the future of our nation, in profound and positive ways.”
Let us continue, and inspire others to begin, that work today.
Jarred Reiling serves as a Presidential Management Fellow within the U.S. Department of Justice Center for Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships.
Cross-posed from ACF’s The Family Room Blog
It’s hard to be a parent. That’s why Father’s Day is so important. It gives us an opportunity to thank dads who are active in their children’s lives—who accept the challenges of raising a family and reap the benefits of their children growing up in a loving environment.
Today, one out of every three children in America is living without a father in the home--about 24 million kids in this country.
Studies have shown that children without a father in the home are two to three times more likely than children with active, involved fathers to live in poverty, use drugs and engage in criminal behavior. These children are also more likely to become victims of child abuse, and experience emotional, health and education problems.
The Administration for Children and Families is working with its programs across the agency to help low-income fathers meet their commitments to their children.
Our Office of Child Support Enforcement helps create stable and healthy environments for children and parents by collaborating with federal, state, tribal and local governments to run the nation’s child support program. OCSE has launched a Family-Centered initiative to encourage child support programs around the county to set accurate support orders based upon a noncustodial parent’s ability to pay them and to link parents to job services, financial education, and co-parenting services. By removing barriers and encouraging positive parental involvement, more children will be able to count on emotional and financial support from both parents. Check out the OCSE website for more information about this initiative: http://transition.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ocsp
In the Office of Family Assistance, our Healthy Marriage and Responsible Fatherhood initiative has awarded 120 grants to organizations, including nonprofits that work to strengthen relationships and marriage between individuals, couples and fathers and their children. The healthy marriage grants provide services, which include counseling, financial management and conflict resolution classes. The fatherhood component promotes the economic stability of fathers through employment skills and subsidized employment, responsible parenting classes, and promoting healthy marriage.
In the Administration for Native Americans, its Strengthening Families Initiative funds culturally relevant strategies to strengthen families and promote family preservation, foster child well-being, responsible parenting and healthy relationship skills. Responsible Fatherhood projects that provide education and activities to fathers to help them overcome barriers to positive involvement in their children’s lives are also supported in this program.
And finally, the Office of Community Services has collaborated with the child support office to implement the Building Assets for Fathers and Families Initiative. This program extends the benefits of financial education, matched savings accounts called Individual Development Accounts, to parents with young children. The child support office awarded seven three-year BAFF demonstration grants that fund partnerships between child support enforcement agencies, Assets for Independence grantees, and fatherhood organizations to identify effective strategies for increasing the financial stability of children and their parents.
While ACF works hard to lift families out of poverty and into a stable and successful environment, we are also finding ways to sustain that stability and success by helping men truly become fathers in the process.
Check out the latest initiative to increase responsible Fatherhood across America.
It’s a great time to be a dad.
Being a dad is so important today because it’s an opportunity to empower the next generation of men and women to conquer whatever challenges may face them. It’s an opportunity to help shape their future.
When fathers aren’t a part of their lives, kids are more likely to get involved in harmful and destructive activities like drug use and crime. On the other hand, giving children the paternal support they need helps them grow into confident, capable and healthy men and women.
All children deserve solid father figures in their lives, but far too many don’t have them. President Obama, whose own father was absent for much of his childhood, understands that. That’s why he created the Fatherhood and Mentoring Initiative to celebrate fatherhood and create meaningful opportunities for fathers and children – and adult mentors and young mentees – to connect.
Children aren’t the only ones who reap the benefits of these relationships; fatherhood is one of the most inspiring things in life. Watching my daughters grow into responsible, driven and happy women has been an indescribable joy.
It has also been great to share my passion for the environment with them. From their earliest days, we enjoyed the “great outdoors” whenever we had a chance – and we still do. But I also showed them the importance of protecting the natural resources that surround us by doing things like recycling and cutting back on energy use. These are things that are still a part of their lives today.
June is America’s Great Outdoors Month, and finding creative ways to enjoy the open, outdoor spaces and keep them healthy and vibrant can be a great opportunity to bond with your son, daughter or mentee – and improve your community at the same time. Check out the outdoor activities aimed at protecting the environment on EPA’s website for some ideas. We would love to hear about some of your outdoor dad experiences this summer, so please share your stories by emailing us at partnerships@epa.gov or tweeting, @EPAgov using #outdoordad.
However you choose to spend your time, I encourage you to continue making fatherhood or mentoring a priority in your life. Take the President’s Fatherhood Pledge, and do your part to help shape the next generation of happy, healthy Americans.
Bob Perciasepe is Deputy Administrator at the US Environmental Protection Agency
As families across the country make plans to celebrate Father’s Day this weekend, the Administration is releasing Promoting Responsible Fatherhood, a report that describes the Administration’s long-standing commitment to encourage all fathers to take responsibility for their children’s intellectual, emotional and financial well-being.
The report being released today looks back at what we’ve been able to accomplish to promote responsible fatherhood, and looks forward to what more we can do, together, to foster healthy families.
To read the full report, click HERE.
Ed. Note: This op-ed by Michael Strautmanis celebrating Father's Day first ran in The Grio
Working for President Obama is an incredible privilege, but my greatest honor is to be the proud father of three beautiful children. This week, I was reminded again of the enormous joy of fatherhood as I watched my eldest son graduate from high school. It was by far one the most fulfilling moments of my life. My wife, our six-year-old daughter, and I sat in the audience, feeling so blessed and so happy to witness his accomplishment. My son: the graduate. He’s never looked better, and I’ve never been prouder.
Like many other parents who work extremely demanding jobs, I know that special moments like graduations, Saturday morning soccer games, and dance recitals are so precious. And it’s amazing how those moments slip by so quickly. As I watched the graduation ceremony, it seemed like it was just yesterday that I held my eldest son in my arms for the first time. I didn’t know where his little life would lead, but I knew that I would love him unconditionally and try my hardest to walk him through those tough life lessons, as my mom and my adopted dad did for me.
President Obama knows the vital role that fathers play in the lives of our children. As a dad of two beautiful young girls and as a son growing up without the presence of his father, the President recognizes that the most important, most challenging, and most fulfilling job he’ll ever have is to be Sasha and Malia’s dad.
President Obama reminds us that we all have a stake in forging stronger bonds between fathers and their children. Children don’t need us to be superheroes; they just need us to be active in their lives, to love them, and to set a good example.
That’s why for the past three years, President Obama has led the President’s Fatherhood and Mentoring Initiative, a multi-year effort to help dads connect to their families and to raise awareness about responsible fatherhood. We also recently released a Promoting Responsible Fatherhood report, which looks back on what we’ve accomplished to promote fatherhood, and looks forward on how we can build on that foundation.
In that spirit, President Obama’s Fatherhood & Mentoring Initiative and the National Responsible Fatherhood Clearinghouse are excited to kick off the “Fatherhood Buzz.” It’s an program that will work with barbershops to connect dads with local resources to help build stronger families. Every couple months, dads and their barbers participating in the initiative will get a different “buzz” topic to discuss at the barbershop.
Today, at this make-or-break moment for working Americans, economic stability and getting good jobs are at the top of our priority list. So, this quarter, the “buzz” is all about financial literacy and job training. Because it’s up to us to work hard to secure our families and plan for the future, for us and for our kids.
At the end of the day, dads have a responsibility to give parenting our best effort. That means showing up and making the right decisions each day to be a good father. Even if you weren’t the best dad in the past, today is a new day and the President’s Fatherhood and Mentoring Initiative is just one of the many programs out there that can help.
I’m certainly not the perfect father. I’ve missed quite a few dinners and special occasions because of work, but my family is always my top priority. When I truly reflect on all that I have done in my life, nothing can compare to the satisfaction I feel when I spend time with my 15-year-old autistic son at the park, read a bedtime story to my little girl, or watch my oldest son prepare to go to college. That pride is a feeling that many dads know well, and it’s enough to keep you going through all the tough times that life may bring.
And let’s remember that parenting can be a great partnership. So, in honor of my beautiful and remarkable wife, I can’t think of a better gift this Father’s Day than the love and support she has given me, along with my three amazing children-I can’t thank them enough.
Michael Strautmanis is Deputy Assistant to President Obama and Counselor for Strategic engagement to Senior Advisor Valerie Jarrett. Strautmanis is also a proud dad of three children and celebrates his 20th wedding anniversary in August.
Repost from The White House Blog
President Obama celebrated Father’s Day a little early with four dads at Kenny’s Barbeque Smokehouse in Northeast Washington, DC. The four fathers, two active duty members of the military and two long-time local barbers from Mason’s Barbershop, talked about the rewards and challenges of fatherhood as well as the joy and anxiety fathers experience watching their children grow up.
President Barack Obama talks with four fathers participating in the the new HHS "Fatherhood Buzz" campaign, as they wait for their lunch at Kenny’s BBQ Smokehouse in Washington, D.C., June 13, 2012. Joining the President, from left, are: Nurney Mason; 1st Lieutenant William Edwards of the U.S. Army; Otis Gamble; and CPT Joubert Paulino of the U.S Army. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)
The President talked about his support for military families along with the First Lady and Dr. Jill Biden through Joining Forces. The President also discussed “Fatherhood Buzz,” a new initiative in conjunction with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services designed to reach out to dads with positive information through their barbers and barber shops, as part of the Administration’s longstanding Fatherhood and Mentoring Initiative. Each quarter will feature a different “buzz” topic – the topic for the first quarter is financial literacy and job training. The initiative is taking place across the country this weekend, including at Mason’s Barber Shop on H Street Northeast in Washington, DC. Nurney Mason, who joined the President for lunch today, has operated Mason’s Barber shop for over 51 years.
Meet the four dads who had lunch with President Obama yesterday to discuss fatherhood
1st Lieutenant William (Bill) Edwards of the U.S. Army is currently based at Fort Jackson in South Carolina where he lives with his wife of 13 years, Esther, and their four children. Lt. Edwards was recently honored by the National Fatherhood Initiative with the 2012 Military Fatherhood Award. He was deployed with the 3rd Infantry Division Band in 2007-2008 for 14 months in Iraq. While he was deployed, he sent a flag that had flown over Camp Victory headquarters in Iraq to his daughter's preschool as a reminder of how much he cared about his family.
Captain Joubert Paulino of the U.S. Army is currently based at Fort Meade in Maryland along with his wife of 16 years, Ginamarie, and their two children Jonah, age 6, and Julia, age 4. CPT Paulino uses his will for adventure to stay connected with his children. For example, he involves his children in the selection process of states or countries where they would like to start an adventure or experience of a lifetime. CPT. Paulino continuously travels for his specialized emergency response team, and serves his country through biological and nuclear defense; however, CPT Paulino remains very involved in his son Jonah's Tiger Scout troop.
Nurney Mason operated Mason’s Barber Shop on H Street Northeast in Washington, D.C. for over 51 years and is one of the longest-standing business owners in the city. Nurney also cuts hair at the U.S. House of Representatives when he’s not managing his shop on H Street. Nurney has been married for over 30 years and has 10 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. He co-owns Mason’s Barber Shop with his son, Robbie. Mason’s Barber Shop is a participant in the “Fatherhood Buzz” campaign.
Otis “Big O” Gamble is still an active barber at Mason’s Barber Shop, a participant in the “Fatherhood Buzz” imitative through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Nurney Mason, the barbershop owner, hired Gamble 45 years ago, and they’ve been cutting hair together for decades. Mr. Gamble had a successful career in the U.S. Army and as a barber. He raised three wonderful children, including a son who is retired from the Army and a daughter who is currently a Major in the Army.
Later in the day, the White House Office of Public Engagement and Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships honored 10 individuals who are doing tremendous work in the field of fatherhood. Education Secretary Arne Duncan and Attorney General Eric Holder delivered remarks at the event where they discussed the importance of fatherhood and healthy families to build stronger communities. The Champions of Change program was created as a part of President Obama’s vision to recognize ordinary Americans who do extraordinary work to serve and strengthen communities around the country. Click here to see the full list of Fatherhood Champions of Change.
Joshua DuBois is Special Assistant to President Obama and Executive Director of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships
Pages
Blog Categories
En respuesta al llamado del presidente Obama para una conversación nacional sobre la paternidad responsable y las familias saludables, aprender cómo usted puede unirse a la Iniciativa Presidencial de Padres y Mentores.