On a sunny Saturday in May, a group gathered at a local elementary school in need of a “facelift”. I counted 22 Be There Dads from 4 other schools, 2 Principals, 3 teachers and 10 children. All had gathered to help make this school “a better place” for the children who attended it.
I am thrilled to tell you about an important event in the life of Be There Dad®. On April 17 at the North Carolina PTA annual convention, we received the Oak Leaf Award in recognition of the Male Engagement Program in Mecklenburg County.
The gleaming Lucite award bore the words, “North Carolina PTA Oak Leaf Award, Be There Dad Male Engagement Program”. I placed it on a shelf in my office among other awards I had collected, mostly during my years coaching recreational soccer, which I like to think provide some measure of my life. Among them is…
Next Tuesday, I will be conducting one of our regularly scheduled Be There Dad workshops at The Rankin Institute. This workshop is open to the public and free of charge. The only obligation is that your register in advance. You can read more about the workshop and register on the link below.
That Saturday was the first truly bright and warm day so far that spring. Like many others, I left early to make my weekly visit to the home improvement store and then return to work in my yard.
The inquiries started with phrases like, “Have you ever… “How would you…” and usually ended with, “What do you think I should do?”
It was the National PTA Male Engagement Conference. Why were we there? As one of the speakers would tell us shortly, “because we all love our children”
Our lives will be measured by the retelling of memories by those who walked beside us.
I sat in the audience of commencement exercises to support my future daughter-in-law as she was about to graduate from law school.