Thank you for tuning into these weekly messages from fathers.com / the National Center for Fathering (NCF). And most of all, thank you for your devotion to your children. As we all commit ourselves to what’s best for the next generation, we make the world a better place—one child, family, and community at a time.
If you read last week’s message, you know that I’m spending a few weeks updating you on our plans going forward and that a big part of that will be reaching out to and addressing the needs of millennial fathers—in ways that are relevant to them. You can read that message here. (Also, like last week, see the end of this message for some encouragement to you as a father about making memories with your children this holiday season.)
In addition, as we seek to encourage and equip all dads, we’ll be giving special attention to reviving or creating programs for several other groups:
Fathers and Daughters. Given the heightened awareness of how women have been taken advantage of through the years and the #MeToo movement, it’s never been more urgent for dads to step up and protect our daughters while preparing them for the future. Dads often struggle to understand and communicate with our daughters—particularly when they reach the teen years. But when we can tune into our daughters’ hearts, we can instill confidence, discernment and security in them like no one else.
In the past, NCF had a very successful and unique program that we plan to relaunch: the Father-Daughter Summit event, which proved to be one of the most productive and life-changing of all of NCF’s programs. Our friend and partner in this effort will be Dr. Michelle Watson, who has an established program for fathers and daughters, and whose insights will be invaluable.
Grandfathers and Fathering Mentors. As I have become a grandfather (12 times now!), I have become acutely aware of both the incredible joy of the grandparent-grandchild relationship and the powerful influence grandparents can have on their grandkids’ future. (And almost four years ago, I started a new outreach to grandparents called Grandkids Matter – grandkidsmatter.org.) And so we will re-awaken and re-enlist grandfathers and older men who can be father figures and mentors. A man’s longer life span isn’t solely for moving to warmer climates or traveling the world; those years can be used to invest in his children’s children and beyond. Grandfathers and elder father figures have important and unique opportunities to contribute love and wisdom to future generations.
Faith-Based Fatherhood Training. Men in churches are often already in organized groups, with systems in place where they can receive support and accountability for their roles as husbands and fathers. Many of these dads are hungry for insights with spiritual truths and applications, and NCF has established partnerships and years of experience applying faith-based principles to help fathers connect with their children. Church groups are also perfect places to challenge men to reach outside their households and become father figures to children who don’t have dads.
I don’t know if you can tell from reading this email, but I get excited when I think about the possibilities ahead. There is much we feel called to do, and we will step forward in these areas as we are able. We would be honored if dads like you would come alongside us and support these efforts with a year-end or monthly contribution of any size.
We still believe involved fathers can have an incredibly positive influence on their families and communities, and we’re determined to be part of making that happen. Please consider supporting our efforts by making a gift online right here.
Thank you, and a blessed holiday season to you and your family.
Ken Canfield
As I mentioned, here’s a link to some ways you can make memories with your kids this holiday season.
