PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) — The Fatherhood Foundation of Virginia is a nonprofit laser-focused on the important role dads play in the lives of their children, and now, it wants to surprise several deserving local fathers with a financial boost heading into Christmas through its Father Christmas program.
“The ultimate goal for Father Christmas is to recognize good men,” said Chris Beach, CEO of the Fatherhood Foundation of Virginia.
The Richmond-based organization recently started free services for dads in Hampton Roads. The Fatherhood Foundation focuses on areas designated by the Attorney General’s Office as high crime areas.
“They identified the top 12 crime communities across the state, and unfortunately, five of those communities are here in the Hampton Roads community,” Beach said. “Where there’s higher crime, there’s higher fatherless homes, so we wanted to make sure that we were in the areas to provide that education of men where the least men are taking an active role in the lives of their children.”
Beach said he also knows there are many great dads who want to be involved, but they are working several jobs to make ends meet. That is where Father Christmas comes in.
“We’re going to pick 10 dads, and we’re going to gift each of them $500.”
It’s a chance to recognize great fathers who are active in the lives of their children and communities, who are doing all they can to provide for their families.
“They might have fallen on some tough times or financial hardships or sickness or health issues,” Beach said. “We want to make sure that they’re being recognized and take a little bit of that stress off of their shoulders during the holidays.”
The deadline for nominations is Dec. 8. If you would like to nominate a father, click here.
Beach said you can also sponsor a dad.
“The money comes to us and goes right back out to the dads,” Beach said, “so if you know of a business or you want to get involved somehow, and you don’t want to go shopping, but you definitely want to help a community member, you can go to our webpage right beside where you nominate a dad. You can say ‘sponsor a dad’ and it is $500. That money comes right to the Fatherhood Foundation of Virginia, and goes into our bank account. We take it out and we bring it right back, put $500 in cash in an envelope and give it right to the dads.”
Beach said the hope is to allow great fathers a chance to truly enjoy the holidays.
“This will allow those dads to take that stress off of them,” he said, “and provide a merry Christmas for them and their families.”
