As I announced previously, on Monday's my blog will be dedicated to a Good New's Story. The purpose of Good New's Mondays is to highlight a non profit organization or individual that is making a positive contribution to the community.
We tend to always see ourselves painted in a negative light on mainstream media, well this is my attempt to highlight the positive!
The first featured organization is Father's Forever! See below to learn more about this organization. I hope that this blog will inspire you to get involved!
What is Fathers Forever?
Fathers Forever is a non-profit organization that serves as a map to help fathers chart a new course of fatherhood. Our aim is to make a lasting impression and difference in the lives of fathers through classes and support groups.
Our Vision
Bridging the Gap between Fathers and Children...thus Saving Our Children, One Father At A Time.
Our Mission
Fathers Forever's purpose is to decrease the number of children being raised without the support of their fathers and decrease the number of non-child support cases in our court system.
When was the organization started and by whom?
Glen Warren, founder of Fathers Forever, has been involved in the empowerment of men for over 25 years as a facilitator of various conferences formed to encourage and empower men to discover the combination to unlocking their future. For the past 16 years, Glen has worked as a mental health crisis counselor for persons with depression, suicidal thoughts and substance abuse issues.
Glen has a Bachelor of Science degree in Health and Physical Education. Currently, he is pursuing a Master's degree in Adult Education. Glen is also pursuing certification as a substance abuse counselor. As a single parent, Glen raised two boys and a girl. He founded Fathers Forever because he knows first-hand the importance of the role of a father in the lives of their children.Glen’s desire and pledge for Fathers Forever is to give experience, commitment and resources to provide a positive alternative that will motivate, educate and equip fathers to become co-parents in their children's lives, resulting in a more productive, healthier society.
As president of Fathers Forever, he is committed to enabling men to be co-parents to their children. By making a donation to Fathers Forever, you will help us provide another solution to an ever increasing problem. Help us bridge the gap between fathers and their children… saving our children, one father at a time.
Some of the many accomplishments of Glen Warren and Father Forever are:
• February 2, 2010 featured in the News and Observer article written by Barry Saunders- “Giving Daddies that Push”
• February 15, 2010 received our 1st Fathers Forever Participant
• March 7, 2010 featured on a local television show titled First Choice Life on the CW22 network hosted by Tim Weir
• March 15, 2010 featured on St. Augustine talk radio WAUG 750 interview conducted by Joel Wiggins
• May 23, 2010 featured on Fox 50 television show Tarheel Talk hosted by Sonya Williams. Since February, we now have 150 participants….. and counting.
• June 17, 2010 featured in the News and Observer article written by Barry Saunders- “Donors Learn To Be Dads”
• June 19, 2010 successfully had Our Grand Opening/Fundraiser event that took place at ballroom donated by the Sheraton Hotel located in Raleigh North Carolina. We had over 125 people in attendance and raised $1,200!
• June 22, 2010 featured in the Triangle Tribune article written by Bonita Best “Bridging the Gap Between Fathers and their Children” http://www.triangletribune.com/index.php?src=permalinks/Bridging_the_gap_between_fathers_and_childre
Fathers Forever is a great name, what is the meaning behind it?
The name Fathers Forever actually came from the bible. We know God as our Everlasting Father, since we are made in His image. We too are fathers forever in the hearts and minds of our children. They will always remember us. The choice is up to each father as to how they are remembered.
What is the ultimate goal of this organization?
Our goal is to help fathers chart a new course of fatherhood. Fathers Forever will also help them to understand the importance of having an on-going active role in the lives of their children, in addition to fulfilling their financial responsibilities. Upon completion of the Fathers Forever program, it is our belief that the fathers will have a new found appreciation of their role as a father. We will develop cohesiveness in families, helping to create stronger communities and healthier societies.
Who are prime candidates for the Fathers Forever program?
Fathers Forever's first priority is fathers who are delinquent in their child support payments. The Judicial System can refer participants to us as a jail diversion and Child Support agencies can refer clients to us as a preventative measure. We will also take referrals from other community support agencies.
Tell us about the services you offer:
R.E.S.E.T. -- Fathers Forever serves as a map to help fathers chart a new course of fatherhood.
R estoring the hearts of fathers back to their children
E quipping fathers through classes and support groups
S ynergizing -- promoting community support
E mbracing the joys and responsibility of fatherhood
T ime -- fathers encouraged to spend quality time with their children.
The Fathers Forever program consists of two components. Each component will be facilitated by a F.O.C.U.S. (For On-going Counseling United Support) coach:
• 30-Hour Course Curriculum: The Joys and Responsibilities of Fatherhood, consisting of classes such as Job Readiness Training, Parenting, Anger Management (Domestic Violence), Substance Abuse and Destiny Development.
• Support Group: Fathers who participate in the course curriculum will receive individual coaching throughout the length of our program. The coach will provide assistance in job placement, GED if needed and other personal goals. Fathers who do not take the course curriculum may also participate in the support group.
What is the biggest success story of Father’s Forever thusfar?
Several of our fathers have found jobs, decreased or started paying on their child support debt and improved on the quality of time spent with their children.
One example of a success story is:
One of our Fathers Forever participants was standing outside the courtroom waiting for me to come to court. (As a practice, we go to court with our participants for support and also to give an account of their progress of being in our program to the judge since they were court ordered.) Normally the participants would wait inside the courtroom; however, he was waiting on me to tie his necktie before he had to appear before the judge. The judge for the day, Honorable Judge Kristin Ruth observed him before court started and as she was walking into court he said, “Hey Judge Ruth, I will be in court as soon as Mr. Warren comes…. I need him to tie my necktie.” This incident touched Judge Kristin Ruth so much that she made mention of it at our Open House event where she was our keynote speaker. Currently, the participant has three part time jobs and has only missed two classes since he was court ordered. He’s working hard to be reunited with his 4 year old daughter. He still has a ways to go, but we are so proud of him!!
When you look back 10 years from now, what do you hope to have accomplished with this organization?
• We have helped in the efforts of restoring the hearts of the fathers back to their children and saving our children one father at a time.
• Have Fathers Forever presence in every county in North Carolina.
• Own several car wash establishments so that we can employ our participants that are seeking work or unemployed.
We believe in fathers and we are committed to the process of tearing down the barriers that are preventing them from being the father they want to be.
What else do you want us to know about Father’s Forever?
We are in need of funding, grant writers, office space, office equipment and community involvement; such as company giving gifts, discounts and coupon that we can pass on to our fathers and their children.
Are there any upcoming events or fundraisers we should be aware of?
Upcoming Events-
• Thursday September 16, 2010 @ 6 AM Fathers Forever will be featured on the ION Network, “For the Record” hosted by Eric Brown.
• October 31, 2010 UNCTV
To contact us
Individuals can ALWAYS:
• Visit our website www.afatherforever.com to find out more information and to join our email mailing list.
• Become fans of Fathers Forever on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/pages/Raleigh-NC/Fathers-Forever/235821653121
• Join us on Twitter http://twitter.com/FathersForever
• Join our Blogs on Blogger http://afathersforever.blogspot.com/
• Check us out and SHARE our Youtube video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g_F7OrN1lK4
How can people donate or volunteer?
To Donate
When you donate to our work, together we are saving our children, one father at a time. When dad is not involved, his children are two to three times more likely to engage in drugs, alcohol, school drop out, violent crimes, teenage pregnancy, and struggle with depression, suicidal thoughts and even suicide.
Fathers Forever is a non-profit organization whose mission is to help fathers chart a new course of fatherhood.
It has been said that "When we know better, we do better." Help us help fathers chart a new course of fatherhood -- thus, Saving Our Children, One Father At A Time. Every child deserves a chance at reaching their fullest potential in life. Children are our future, our most precious commodity and they are worth the investment. GET INVOLVED! http://www.afatherforever.com/donateonline.html
To Volunteer
Fathers Forever volunteers are second to none we are truly grateful and appreciative to our super volunteers. GET INVOLVED!! http://www.afatherforever.com/volunteers.html
We are in need of:
• Event volunteer willing and able to fulfill the needs of Fathers Forever.
• Men to be FOCUS Coaches to mentor/work with our fathers on a individual basis to help them stay focused, encourage and assist them in breaking down the barriers that keep them being good fathers.
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First and foremost, thank you to Father's Forever for participating in my first Good New's blog.
I hope that in reading this blog, you are inspired to give either monetarily or a bit of your time to helping strengthen our communities "One Father At a Time".
Having grown up without a father in the home I understand all to well the importance of an organization such as this.
To learn more about this organization please visit: http://www.afatherforever.com/
If you know of an organization or an individual who deserves to be recognized please email me at mahoganyexp@yahoo.com.
First off, let me applaud you on your attempt to bring balance to the national perception of our community. If more news agencies followed your lead and did a positive story for every negative story they show, maybe people wouldn't lock their doors or clutch their purses tighter when we come around.
ReplyDeleteThis seems like a great organization and hopefully it receives more attention because they are taking on a large and very important role of training and preparing fathers. Great idea for a weekly blog.
I co-sign with Infinite. A great start for a great weekly blog. I wish this organization much success as well as its participants. I certainly applaud the founder in his quest to help Fathers become just that.
ReplyDelete~ $chroeder
Alpha: Shout out to Celine Dion too!
ReplyDeleteOur concern for this organization is that it is setting NC fathers up for failure. The goal of this program is to get fathers to understand that it is their responsibly as a "good father" to pay child support and work with the biased family courts. Our belief is that child support is a money generating medium to make lawyers rich and keep fathers as visitors. Real change will come when fathers are not identified by how much support they pay but how much time and access to their children they get that are denied.
ReplyDelete