PRISON FELLOWSHIP: National Fatherhood Initiative

“I never knew when my father was coming home,” Ahmarr Melton told DelawareOnline.com.

For 14 years, Melton watched other boys play with their fathers and experience a unique relationship that he never had. His own father, Coley Harris, had been serving a second-degree murder sentence since Melton was two years old.

A program in six eastern Tennessee counties is helping to prepare men behind bars to become better fathers for their children.

Team Dad, a project funded by the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services and sponsored by the Douglas-Cherokee Economic Authority, is equipping these men to be the parents their children need when they are released.

Being a father is hard work.  Today’s dads have to be part counselor, part confidant, part disciplinarian, part encourager, part teacher, and part advocate.  A good dad has to be aware of all the things happening in his kids’ lives, and be available when those kids have questions, concerns, or fears.

The National Fatherhood Initiative is announcing today the release of an updated version of InsideOut Dads, its outstanding program focused on reconnecting incarcerated fathers with their families.

The InsideOut Dads program is composed of 12 core sessions, with an additional four optional sessions.