For most of us males, Father’s Day is a joyous day to celebrate our dads and spend time with our children as they celebrate us. We learned from our fathers and pass this knowledge to our sons. Dads offer advice, teach sons to play catch and how to fish, and show them how to be a productive member of the community.
For too many boys this life is only something they have seen portrayed on TV. Their reality is growing up fatherless. Too many boys in our community have fathers that don’t play an active role in their lives. Some are by choice, some are incarcerated, and others succumbed to addictions or couldn’t or wouldn’t break the cycle in which they were brought up. Either way the news isn’t good. These fatherless children are more likely to live in poverty, have a host of other risk factors to healthy development and shockingly, 71 percent of high school dropouts are fatherless.
I don’t place blame and am not opinionated as to the causes or reasons for fatherlessness nor am I bemoaning children being raised by a single mother. I simply wish all boys had a loving, supportive father in their lives every day.
Agencies like Big Brothers Big Sisters can do nothing to change the circumstances in which a child lives, but we can do something to foster their support system.
We are always in need of male volunteers to take on the role of Big Brothers especially men from diverse backgrounds. Making a difference in a child’s life is not as hard as you may think. Can you teach a boy to fish who has never held a fishing pole? Play catch and talk about life? Attend their sporting event? Work on a bike together, go to the movies, or just help with homework?
This Father’s Day I ask that you consider volunteering in some way to help the boys in our community who don’t have positive male role model, and most importantly not one they call dad. We can’t change that sad fact but together we can give them the tools to navigate life’s challenges despite being fatherless.
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Monmouth & Middlesex Counties started mentoring local children in 1976. We are proud of our long history but we still need the support of the community every year. We are a volunteer and donor-driven organization and rely on the support of individuals, businesses, and foundations to enable us to continue changing lives.
Written by William Salcedo
William Salcedo is the executive director of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Monmouth & Middlesex Counties.
I don’t place blame and am not opinionated as to the causes or reasons for fatherlessness nor am I bemoaning children being raised by a single mother. I simply wish all boys had a loving, supportive father in their lives every day.
Agencies like Big Brothers Big Sisters can do nothing to change the circumstances in which a child lives, but we can do something to foster their support system.
We are always in need of male volunteers to take on the role of Big Brothers especially men from diverse backgrounds. Making a difference in a child’s life is not as hard as you may think. Can you teach a boy to fish who has never held a fishing pole? Play catch and talk about life? Attend their sporting event? Work on a bike together, go to the movies, or just help with homework?
This Father’s Day I ask that you consider volunteering in some way to help the boys in our community who don’t have positive male role model, and most importantly not one they call dad. We can’t change that sad fact but together we can give them the tools to navigate life’s challenges despite being fatherless.
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Monmouth & Middlesex Counties started mentoring local children in 1976. We are proud of our long history but we still need the support of the community every year. We are a volunteer and donor-driven organization and rely on the support of individuals, businesses, and foundations to enable us to continue changing lives.
Written by William Salcedo
William Salcedo is the executive director of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Monmouth & Middlesex Counties.
