Dads On Duty
In a world where negativity abounds, it is important to remind ourselves that there are still tons of men taking action to positively influence others and improve their communities in the process. As this site builds from the ground up, there will be an entire section of the Blog dedicated to these men titled Bold Males. This is the first such post in a series in which I will highlight men that range from the famous that are regularly in the public spotlight to the ordinary guys that are making an impact on a more local level. Think of these guys as the “Famous Friends” in the Chris Young song of the same title. There will even be some old school wisdom from my father-in-law in a section I call Frank Talk (yes, he is named Frank).
To that end, there was a story recently in the news that caught my attention as the perfect example of what it means to be Boldly Male. Southwood High School in Shreveport, LA was facing a wave of violence with multiple fights and arrests. Rather than sitting idly by and ignoring, a group of fathers formed a group called Dads on Duty to take shifts just being present at the school. The fatherly presence and sense that men of the community cared about these kids immediately calmed the situation. As one student said in the article “The school has just been happy - and you can feel it.”
This is the type of influence men can have when we are intentional. These men did not wait back for someone in government to solve the problem. Good thing too, because that would be a very long wait for a solution. In the grand scheme of things, the local Dads on Duty performed a relatively small gesture that impacts only one high school but there can be wide ranging repercussions from actions like this. The kids in that school see that behavior modeled and carry it out into their myriad interactions with the outside world. Other men get inspired to do something similar in their local communities. When enough ripples like that get going, eventually a wave of positive behavior spreads to have a meaningful impact nationwide. As he states in the video, that is the plan of Michael Lafitte and his fellow dads that saw a need and stepped up and filled it.
In my own life, my wife and I are committee members for the local YoungLife chapter that financially and prayerfully supports the volunteer leaders (including our son) that are doing the contact work of forming personal relationships with middle and high school students all over the world reaching the next generation with the good news of Jesus.
Have you seen an inspirational video of men standing up in their community to make a difference? Do you have a direct personal experience to share? Let us know about in the comments below.