Yesterday evening, the central feeling in everyone’s hearts at our intimate dinner was gratitude. With the Good Dads board of directors at the helm, this spectacular event was the gathering of our dreams! Around 75 guests joined us at Venue…
Thank you for another successful Training Camp! A dozen facilitators joined Good Dads in Springfield, MO, last week from across Missouri to learn the best ways to lead Good Dads FORGE classes for fathers in their communities. It was a…
Have you heard of the African proverb, “It takes a village to raise a child”? This statement means that children need the helpful and loving support of lots of grown-ups—not just parents—to succeed. It also means that dads and moms…
Following Good Dads’ screening of “Gone Guys,” an energetic—sometimes hopeful, sometimes sad—but nonetheless meaningful conversation occurred. We hosted a six-member panel to speak about their personal and professional experiences as it relates to the themes and topics in the documentary.…
This week on the Good Dads Blog we sat down with one of the newest members of the Good Dads team, Scott Lewis, a former aviation operations specialist and father to a one-year-old daughter. Previously, Scott worked as Product Manager…
Friday was a very special day at Good Dads! We’re thrilled with the amount of productive brainstorming and positive feedback from the newest members of the Good Dads team after last week’s Chapter Orientation. Facilitators and advisory board members representing…
Last week, Training Camp looked a little different compared to other Good Dads training events! Whereas we’d typically invite anyone with a heart for service who believes in the power of responsible fatherhood to attend Training Camp events—this time we…
Somehow, we blinked and the holidays are already here. While we hurdle toward the end of the year, nonprofits everywhere are neck-deep in their spreadsheets: crunching their numbers, gathering statistics and packaging everything together in appeal letters, annual reports, PowerPoints,…
Imagine our surprise and delight when representatives from DMP, Digital Monitoring Products, called the Good Dads offices this fall. “We love the work that you do, and we want to support you,” they said. We jumped for joy! Every year…
Thirty-two Missouri residents came together last week for Good Dads Training Camp, a fun and fast-paced training over three days in Springfield, MO, to learn all there is to know about leading New Pathways for Good Dads classes. This remarkable…
All of us at Good Dads are feeling an abundance of gratitude for the outpour of support we witnessed at our celebration on Thursday, Oct. 16. Father-focused individuals from across the state joined us to support Good Dads as our…
In the nonprofit field, we always have our eyes set on the horizon. We’re always concerned with what the future holds. So it should come as no surprise that we’ve been planning for our 10th anniversary fundraising dinner and celebration…
We loved seeing Good Dads leaders from across the state Friday, July 18, at our Family Reunion in Springfield, MO. This wonderful event was the perfect summer celebration and opportunity to make memories together. We'll be thinking about the joy, listening and insights from this day for a long time!
We honored 24 exceptional men on Thursday, June 12, at the Downtown Church in Springfield, MO. This amazing event, with 150+ attendees, celebrated the dedicated fathers who met all the criteria of the New Pathways for Good Dads program. These…
Wow! More than three dozen father-focused leaders representing 15 Missouri communities joined Good Dads in Springfield, MO, to be trained to facilitate Good Dads 2.0 and Within My Reach, the two classes that serve dad participants in the New Pathways…
Good Dads was honored to host its latest Chapter Orientation, welcoming community leaders from ten Missouri communities! The event, Friday April 11, in Springfield, was the latest in Good Dads’ ongoing efforts to expand the nonprofit’s mission throughout Southwest MO…
We’re building a fence at the top of the cliff. That’s probably one of the easiest and most concise ways to describe what we’re doing at Good Dads. We are constructing a sturdy barrier overlooking a ravine because we want…
Quiet settled across the pews at the Downtown Church in Springfield, MO, on Sunday, Nov. 3. Good Dads guests—including parents, partners, friends and children—turned to face the back of the sanctuary as the first notes of Pomp and Circumstance, the…
Good Dads staff are feeling endless gratitude for the outpour of support we saw at our annual fundraiser celebration on Thursday, Oct. 17. Nearly 400 guests joined us to support responsible fatherhood in a community context. It’s amazing what we…
Good Dads hosted its first-ever Chapter Orientation event on Wednesday, July 17, and it was a real hit! With our increased focus on expansion, aimed at reaching more dads throughout Missouri than was previously possible, we know that building relationships…
When Benjy Lampert and his wife, Lori, discovered they were going to have a baby, the couple was elated … and more than a little surprised. They’d been trying to get pregnant for less than a month. “We thought, ‘that…
Last week, we announced the four Outstanding Father of the Year finalists: Congratulations, Dads! Finalists are invited to be Good Dads’ distinguished guests at our annual dinner and banquet this September. They will also receive certificates honoring their new titles.…
If you submitted a nomination to the 2023 Outstanding Fathers of the Year contest this spring, thank you! We received submissions from across the Ozarks from people who recognize the important roles that dads play in the lives of kids.…
Twice a year, Good Dads brings together community leaders, counselors and therapists, business professionals, faith leaders and lots of others who want to make a difference in the lives of dads and kids. We do this in the form of…
Barry Kolb of Branson, Missouri, attended the Good Dads Summer Training Camp this June because he knew his church would benefit from a curriculum designed for men. Kolb is the leader and pastor at resTore in Hollister, Missouri. He and…
Mark Boyd is the pastor at The Life Church in Mountain Grove, Missouri. The church serves disadvantaged populations, especially those with a history of addiction, with his mission in reconciliation. Boyd and his church host several groups a week, including…
How do you build a safe home for you and your family when you didn’t have a stable upbringing yourself? How can you be a good dad when you didn’t have positive role models growing up? How can dads use…
The Good Dads staff hosted its second-annual fundraising dinner Thursday, Oct. 6, with music and entertainment to celebrate the last year of growth at the nonprofit. By the end of the fundraiser, Good Dads collected just over $100,000! The entire…
This blogpost marks the second week showcasing snapshots from the Good Dads Summer Training Camp, a five-day workshop hosted earlier this month. Social workers, Good Dads facilitators, faith leaders, counselors, and many others from around the region who want to…
The Good Dads team hosted its summer training camp last week, a five-day workshop for mental health professionals, Good Dads facilitators, and anyone else who wanted to improve their working relationships with men. Attendees were trained in three brand-new Good…
Real Men, Real Stories I met Chad as a new participant in the New Pathways program in a Fatherhood Development class. He was discouraged, felt alone, and was mad at the world. He did not have contact with his children,…
I believe in the power of a glove. This is not a religious conviction, though Annie Savoy and Joh Kinsella would probably disagree. I hold a simple belief that a glove can make a significant difference in someone’s life. …
I was thirteen years old and standing in the middle of a grocery store in Mexico. Just twelve hours earlier, I was in my church parking lot praying with our group before we left for Mexico – excited, nervous, and…
Getting Started When Good Dads began, the only resource in our community that came close to helping fathers be more engaged with their children was something called All Pro Dads (APD). A small number of local faith-based efforts, primarily housed…
Here are Good Dads we are often asked, “What kids of dads do you help?” Good Dads is here to help all dads be more successful in connecting with their children. One of the ways we help dads of all…
I frequently speak to groups about the importance of father engagement to outcomes for children—physically, mentally, behaviorally, and academically. I also say that even if you didn’t care a thing about how children fare, you might still be interested in…
It happened again this week. Someone called and requested the opportunity to come by and talk about why I was involved with starting Good Dads. Why would a woman who is a mother and grandmother attempt to launch such a…
