Helping Out Indian Dads
I recently read an article in the Sioux City Journal about a program called “Fatherhood is Sacred”. This program was created to help those Indian fathers who care about their children but are without contact with them for one reason or another. This program helps those Indian fathers who want to be strong leaders and role models for their children.
Travis Coleman of the Sioux City Journal writes:
Six months ago, a rift with the mother of his 2-year-old son stopped Robert Rouillard from seeing his son.
“I felt like I was down and out. You wake up every morning and think about your son and he’s not there,” Rouillard said.
Then came Fatherhood is Sacred, a 12-week program that Rouillard joined to help him become a better dad. Rouillard, along with Anthony Yellowbank from Sioux City, graduated from the Mesa, Ariz.-based program and recently created the first urban chapter of the program that had only been offered to American Indian men on reservations.
Rouillard’s participation in the program helped him recently gain temporary custody of his son.
About 20 dads from the Omaha, Santee and Winnebago tribes joined Rouillard recently to discuss similar experiences and what the program means to them.
“It’s a guiding light that allows us to be what we were meant to be,” said attendee Scott Aldrich. “And that’s a leader.”
Aldrich and others are products of the program created in 2001 by Albert Pooley. When the program first began, there was only one attendee. The program then reached out to American Indian fathers in jail. But the program has since reached out to those who are set to become dads to those looking for ways to become a more effective dad.
“When the program found me, I thought I was living a pretty decent life,” Yellowbank said. “It has enhanced me, helped me. My life has been getting better and better by the day.”
The program is the first of its kind, as courses that seek to create a stronger bond between parent and child have been traditionally offered to women and children.
This program will undoubtedly help out many Indian fathers become the leaders and first teachers of their children.
You can read the whole article here.
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