Two leading fatherhood support networks will soon unite as a single organization dedicated to championing fathers and helping them succeed at being actively engaged parents.

City Dads Group and Fathering Together will operate as one, creating a stronger and more comprehensive platform to help provide vital resources and connections to fathers in and through local communities across the globe.

City Dads Group is a diverse community of fathers dedicated to being actively involved in their children’s lives. Founded in 2008, City Dads Group has chapters in 41 cities across the United States and Canada. The chapters focus on holding in-person gatherings of fathers, with or without their children present, where bonding, commiseration and support can take place.

Fathering Together is a nonprofit global network of more than 125,000 fathers and allies around the world dedicated to promoting active fatherhood and providing support, resources, advocacy and education for dads. Established in 2018, Fathering Together started years earlier as a Facebook group “Dads with Daughters” which quickly blossomed to include tens of thousands of fathers sharing stories, seeking advice and offering wisdom.

The new organization, to be headed by Fathering Together’s current leadership team, is a strategic partnership that will result in a broader online and in-person network, enhanced programming, and a more significant impact on the lives of fathers, families and communities.

“We are thrilled to join with Fathering Together to strengthen, sustain and expand our communities,” said Matt Schneider, co-founder of City Dads Group. “We have a real opportunity to positively impact the way we view and value fathers as a society.”

Lance Somerfeld, co-founder of City Dads Group, added, “Since the pandemic, we’ve been trying to figure out the best path forward for our communities of dads to evolve, grow and thrive. We felt that the most authentic, seamless, and strategic partner to fulfill that goal was joining forces with Fathering Together.”

Key benefits of the partnership include:

1. Expanded Reach: The new organization will reach over 150,000 dads across the globe with in-person groups in Canada, Kenya, Malawi, and the United States.

2. Innovative Programming: The entity will offer more robust programs including school-based “social emotional learning” for dads, online panels, and in-person meetups to empower dads to be advocates for change.

3. Inclusive Community: As members define fatherhood for themselves, regardless of background or identity, all will be welcome to share their story, and grow together in their journey.

Brian Anderson, co-founder and board president of Fathering Together, said, “We are honored that City Dads Group places their faith in us to continue advocating for fathers worldwide. We look forward to bringing the City Dads Group community into ours so we might empower dads to be emotionally courageous, connected, and committed to their families.”

Read the official press announcement.

Photo by Tyler Nix on Unsplash

A new parenting book for dads uses a successful business philosophy as the basis for creating more engaged and loving fathers and partners.

Fathering Together: Living a Connected Dad Life, written by Brian Anderson, a co-founder of the Fathering Together nonprofit organization, preaches a new narrative for fatherhood based on “servant leadership.” Based on the writings of Robert Greenleaf, servant leadership espouses that corporate leaders should put the needs of employees ahead of all else. By helping employees grow and develop, they (and the company) perform better and thrive. In turn, the employees want to serve others even as they grow into leadership roles themselves.

DISCLOSURE: City Dads Group has previously teamed with Fathering Together on various projects.

Anderson’s book — available in e-format and print — captures the stories of dozens of dads who are striving for healthier and stronger relationships. For it, he interviewed scores of the more than 125,000 followers of his organization’s Facebook groups and found many dads use servant-leadership teachings in their parenting without even realizing it.

In the book, Anderson provides personal stories and practical skills weaved into the main tenants of servant-leadership to provide dads with a new pathway. He challenges all fathers to create a dad-first mindset. Anderson encourages them to be present, express their emotions, cultivate lifelong learning, and advocate for social change among many other things. He refers to the book as ” a love letter to my fellow dads because I believe in our capacity to change and our capacity to build,” Anderson wrote in the introduction.

Brian Anderson, who serves as the executive director of Fathering Together, is raising two elementary-school-aged daughters in his marriage of more than a decade. An ordained minister, he has also been a farmer, social worker, community organizer, university chaplain, interfaith leadership consultant and certified spiritual director.

When you apply for a job it’s important to know where you stand online. You need to know how your Facebook and Instagram posts, among other social media platforms, paint a picture of you in a digital space. This picture can determine how the rest of the world sees you as well. The good news is that as an adult, or at least a person that is physically capable of uploading a photo, discretion is at hand.

The same cannot be said for our children when they are young.

As cute as they can be as babies, toddlers and youngsters, they usually have no say as to how we portray them online. I am conflicted by this. I love my son and I want the world to know just how adorable he is. He is approaching his third month now and I can’t seem to post enough photos. At the same time, I do my best to constrain myself so as to prevent being another new parent that floods your Facebook feed. I never wanted to be one of these parents, but — oh, well.

My mother-in-law has a very clear stance on this: “Never put up photos on Facebook!” I didn’t see the immediate problem since I have been on Facebook for a decade now and most of the people I’ve met in that time are also on the site. That is, however, until I became a Christian and purged all of the “inappropriate” photos and posts that didn’t align with my new life. The point I am trying to make is that I was able to easily go into my account and delete whatever it was I saw unfit. I have the option to do so. My son, or any other young child does not. I’d hate for my son to not get accepted into a prestigious high school because images of him naked with cake frosting on his face didn’t align with their mission statement. It’s still cute, though.

I simply want to know: Are we robbing our kids of the clean slate we had before the Internet became what it is now and represented you to potential employers, schools, etc.?

My wife Veronica and I like to consider ourselves to be tech savvy, each with our own string of social media accounts. We love how it connects people with similar interests and goals. And yes, on occasion, we’ll share our meals, locations, and events we may be celebrating at the moment – all typical social media posts.

Now that we have a baby in the house and the prospect of sharing him with the world has be considering any possible repercussions. I recently read an article that put it in really simple terms as to why there are parents refusing to post their child’s photo on the Internet. In the article, Not All Parents Post Photos of Their Babies on Facebook, the argument of digital repercussions is very clear: “Some parents have privacy and safety concerns” while others “worry about what companies might do with their child’s image and personal data.” And, lastly, the point that I agree with the most, many parents “simply do it out of respect for their kids’ autonomy before they are old enough to make decision for themselves.”

These are all very valid points but ultimately we have to trust that the parent has the child’s best interest at heart. Like many of our readers, I’ve made many mistakes as a kid. Fortunately I was born in 1983 and the worst that could happen, if any mistake was caught on camera, for instance, would be it airing on America’s Funniest Home Videos.

Will I stop posting photos of my son and future children? Probably not. Will I be more conscience of what I post knowing that it will be on the Internet forever. Definitely yes.

About Wes Güity

Wes Güity is a creative entrepreneur and digital video producer in the Bronx. He is also an excited (and exhausted) new dad and documents his adventures with his wife on their blog WesandVeronica.com, featuring originals articles and other media. Wes also loves technology and uses this passion to review parent-focused apps and products online. A version of this first appeared on W+V.