Matthew Baker was born and raised in Salt Lake City, Utah. At 19 years old he served two years as a missionary for the Mormon Church in Osaka, Japan. Upon his return he began his undergraduate...
Champions of Change: Fatherhood
President Obama has said that being a father to Malia and Sasha is the most important job he has. At the same time, growing up without a dad himself, the President understands firsthand the holes that fathers leave in their families when they are absent. Over the past two years, President Obama has joined with fathers around the country through the President’s Fatherhood and Mentoring Initiative to send a strong message about personal responsibility while supporting dads who want to be there for their kids. This Initiative has included support for local fatherhood programs, town halls around the nation, partnerships with outside organizations and a new www.fatherhood.gov website. In honor of Father’s Day, we honor these Champions of Change who recognize the importance of good fathers as role models in young children’s lives and have dedicated themselves to mentoring and supporting fathers across the country.
Thabiti Boone is an inspirational public figure, speaker, a college basketball Hall of Famer, author, leader, minister and humanitarian. He is a strong supporter for President Obama White House...
LS1 Christopher Cady is in the U.S. Navy and is the recipient for the 2011 Military Fatherhood Award from the National Fatherhood Initiative. His son, Joshua was born with a virus (Cytomegalovirus...
Steve Crawford has been in education for 13 years as an elementary teacher, assistant principal and now a principal. He first experienced the positive and powerful father-figure influence as a...
Carlos Duran is the founder of Hombres de Palabra (Men of their Word), an organization “helping men reach their maximum potential through education, training and initiatives.” He worked for...
George Gordon II is a young father who mentors other young fathers at his church. He was born in Berlin, Germany, where both of his parents were serving in the military. When his parents divorced...
Thomas Green III is a US Army Veteran, deployed in Iraq. He was awarded a Purple Heart after being seriously injured by an IED. Thomas is currently working for the Department of Veterans Affairs...
Daniel Jenkins is an active duty Master Sergeant in the West Virginia Air National Guard, as the Retention Office Manager, for the 167th AirLift Wing, located in Martinsburg, West Virginia. He has...
Jonathan is the Internship Coordinator for Year Up Atlanta. Jonathan has extensive experience in nonprofit and corporate managerial leadership. He is a native of New York City and a graduate of...
George has been recognized previously through the Illinois Fatherhood Initiative and is being recognized for his role as a grandfather. George has 18 grandchildren who are extremely important to...
Dr. Roderick Mitchell is the Founder and Pastor of the New Life Church, Inc. of Cleveland, Mississippi since March of 1994. He is the Founder and President of Exodus School of the Bible in Renova...
Al Plummer is a father of two children who has been married to his High School Sweetheart for 19 years. He was raised in Wabash, Indiana and graduated from Purdue University in 1990. He focused on...
Mary E. Polk is currently a Service Program Manager for Delaware’s Department of Services for Children, Youth and their Families. She is a graduate of Johnson C. Smith University and has over 25...
Adam has been Executive Director of Metro Teen AIDS since 2001, and worked a variety of HIV prevention and adolescent health promotion capacities for over 20 years. He began his career as an...
Eric C. Schurz Sr. is a father who had his life turned around by a fatherhood program promoted within the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community in Arizona. After turning his life around...