Support Groups for Fathers
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Stay-at-home dad looking for play groups
Oct 2012
Hi, I'm currently a stay-at-home dad of my 1-year old son. The past six months or so it seems like he's been pretty content with our daily routine of going for walks with our dog, playing indoors, swimming and music once a week, and the occasional visit to Studio Grow. I think he's getting to the age where some more social interaction with other kids his age would be good, but I'm not sure the best way to meet other parents. Ideally it would be great to find other stay-at-home dads. I saw that there was an East Bay Dads group, but looking at their calendar and forum, it seems like their most recent activities were over a year ago. So basically I'm asking if there is indeed a stay-at-home dad group in the East Bay, or if there are any other groups that wouldn't mind a dad in the mix. Any recommendations appreciated. Brian
Check out East Bay Dads-- my husband had a great time with that group when he was home with our son. Beer, bbq, and playgroup... but I'll never know what really happened there: no moms allowed!
We loved the Epworth playgroup in North Berkeley, and some kids came with moms, dads, grandparents, nannies, etc. It meets once a week and you can pick the day (you could ask if some days tend to have a lot of dads that come if you were looking to meet other stay-at-home dads). For more information, see http://www.epworthberkeley.org/children-youth/playgroups/ Anon
Fathers' Groups?
April 2011
Awhile back, someone posted on one of these lists that he was starting a group for fathers, and I've lost the contact info. If the group is still happening, I'd like to refer a father with a one year old daughter. Please repost! thanks, Bonnie
Check out Bruce Linton, PhD who has been running the Father's Forum for many years and has groups for new and expectant fathers. I don't have his number handy, but he is definitely in the book and has a web site. Good luck!
Sorry - I did not see the original question, but see a reply. If you are looking for a father's group, check out East Bay Dads http://eastbaydads.com/ A dad
A stress'n single parenting Dad
Sept 2008
Hello fellow parents, I am a recently single Dad who has a daughter of 4 years. We currently have a close and loving relationship. She will begin living with me full time beginning this Oct. I am looking for advise/support in the following areas: a) contacting other single parents, particularly fathers about this challenge b) locating a childcare coop in the Oakland/Berkeley area c) the feasibility of starting a childcare coop in my neighborhood. thanks, alan
Hi. Call Bruce Linton. He runs the Father's Forum and would be a great resource. I don't have his number with me, but he's in Berkeley and there is probably a Father's Forum website. Good Luck
East Bay Dads
Feb 2005
East Bay Dads is group of fathers with babies, toddlers and pre-schoolers in the Oakland / Berkeley area. We meet every Monday morning with our kids at a local park, museum, or other place. Most Thursday mornings there is a hike for dads with kids still young enough to go in a front- or backpack or jog stroller. The group is free and open to anyone (some of us are full time stay-at-home dads, others work part time and/or have flexible work schedules). We welcome all dads in the East Bay to check the schedule at www.eastbaydads.org and come meet up with us!
Evan Weissman
How to find playgroups with dads?
May 2002
Hi - I'm a stay at home Dad. I'm interested in playgroups or classes for my 6 month old son (only child). Many groups I see refer to Mommies so I'm not sure if a Daddy is ok too. Any suggestions on where my son and I can go so he can 'socialize' with other babies, while I socialize with parents (moms or dads)? A mixed group (ie moms and dads) would be great, as I don't want to be the odd man out (literally). Thanks! John
Although not a playgroup per se, I know dads who attend Music Together classes with their small children. There are many classes offered each week, and I'm sure you could find one where there is at least a sizable minority of dads. Website: www.eastbaymusictogether.com. My 8-month-old daughter really enjoys the classes. Liz O.
I'm a grizzled veteran of 5 years of stay-at-home-daddom in Berkeley and here's what worked for me: first, I joined the Neighborhood Parents Network (527-6667). They have new member orientations that you can attend to meet other new parents, and they have a variety of playgroups. Obviously, most playgroups will be run by moms, but many moms (although not all) are open to having dads in the group. I am part of the only playgroup for stay-at-home dads in the East Bay (that I know about, at least) and we always welcome new members. Another good resource for meeting parents is East Bay Moms, which sponsors hikes for parents and children - you can find information about them at eastbaymoms.com. Go to your local playground and talk to the parents there; get to know the other moms and dads in your neighborhood who hang out at the park. But you'd better get used to being the odd man out because most of the time you'll be the only dad in a playgroup; that's just the way it is. Despite that, the Berkeley/Oakland area is a great place to be an at-home dad because often you'll find other dads at the playground or at classes, and the moms you meet are usually very dad-friendly. Richard
The June issue of ''Parents' Press'' (which I, admittedly, work for, so I'm biased) will be out and available free of charge at libraries, kids' stores, markets, etc., about the 26th of this month. One of the features is about the Grateful Dads over in Marin who do fairly strenuous hikes together with their babies and toddlers in backpacks. There's also a sidebar about the Father's Forum in Berkeley and other organizations for dads and kids. If none of these meet your needs, consider posting a message here on the parents' network and organizing your own group. Good luck; I'm very glad to see fathers banding together in this way. Melanie
I don't know how I missed your initial message, but I'm the ''organizing tendency'' for an outing group for dads and kids here in the East Bay, very loosely associated with Bruce Linton's Father's Forum. As our kids get older, we're sort of becoming a playgroup! We used to hike more....
Remainder of 2002 Schedule (meetings are at 10AM unless noted):
June 16 - Aguatic Park ''Choo-Choo Park'' playground July 20-21 - Camping at Samuel P. Taylor - All Parental Genders Invited! August 18 - Niles Canyon Railroad, Sunol - Steam Trains - late start, 10:30+ September 15 - Bay Trail hike, starting at the Albany Bulb October 20 - Crab Cove, Alameda - late Start? November 17 - Lake Merritt - playground at the bird sanctuary Nothing in December
We are now using E-groups for communication, http://www.egroups.com/group/EBayDads-Kids If you join, you'll get reminders 2 weeks and 3 days before scheduled events, and you'll be a part of various side discussions that periodically erupt. http://users.lmi.net/~ryoung
May 1998
Two great men do Fathers Groups in Bay area if you want facilitation: Bruce Linton 644-0300. He has new book out and is presenting and signing also at the Habitot, the new Childrens museum downtown Berkeley, I think it is June 6th. Other person is Marti Sochet 930-9350.
Sherry
Check out Andrew Gordon-Kirsch's Support Group For Dads: https://www.andrewgk.com/dads Highly recommend Andrew as a facilitator, community builder, and overall amazing human!
While I don't have any recommendations for you, I would also be interested in a similar group. Last year I had seen an article in the NY Times about a men's support group near Houston called F3, which focuses on the "3 F's": fitness, fellowship and faith. While the faith element doesn't necessary appeal to me, the idea of a support group does that focuses on emotional support, fitness, as well as the community building that you mention is something that would be interesting to me too. However, after reading that article I have done some searching for similar local groups and came up empty, unfortunately. I'll be looking for the responses to your question in the hopes that someone knows of this type of group!
Second the rec for Andrew’s group, highly recommend!
Testimonial on Andrew's group mentioned here! I was tremendously impressed with Andrew as a facilitator, and also with the quality and intimacy of the conversations this space created. Highly recommend.
+1 for andrewgk. Precisely for both the things you are looking for. I increased the number of other involved dads by 8x through this group and everyone remains in contact.
I second the recommendation for Andrew Gordon-Kirsch's dad groups! I'm in one of them right now; we're in our last couple weeks of the "program" and it's been very rewarding, and put me in touch with some other very cool dads. I believe we're the second cohort of dads he's worked with, and he's starting a couple more groups in the winter. Basically we've been meeting weekly for 6-8 weeks or so, with a picnic at the beginning and the end to meet each other's kids and partners. Andrew's a great facilitator and a really thoughtful guy, I highly recommend the group.
Hi! I organize a community group for moms and have heard many times that folks would love something like this for dads. If a local dad is thinking about organizing such a group, I would be glad to talk through the process of getting it started, keeping it going, and working through the hiccups that might come along. This group has been incredibly rewarding for me. My heart swells every time I hear that someone found support, made a connection, or offered help through the group. With the help of BPN, it's been fairly easy to build the group and keep it going for more than two years.
Our group is B.E.A.R. Moms (Berkeley, El Cerrito, Albany, Richmond), you can look us up on BPN.
Depending on where you live, and how you identify, you might find something that fits your needs on this list of gropd for fathers/father figures. My understanding is that it is kept updated, but no promises. I do know the Fathers Circle at the Oakland Library is still active.
https://first5alameda.org/files/Fathers_Corps/2022-2023/Fatherhood%20Gr…