Father’s Day 2012 ~ Reconnecting Families and Dads

HUD is encouraging Public Housing Authorities (PHAs) across the U.S. to participate in
Father’s Day 2012 on June 16" - the Saturday before the actual holiday. The event
has a dual purpose: Providing fun activities to support the bonding of fathers and their
children while connecting fathers to economic development resources. To host the
celebrations, PHAs partner with federal agencies, nonprofits, and local businesses. The
celebrations feature activities from moon bounces to reading booths, focusing on celebrating
fatherhood, family and dads in staying connected with their children.

Reconnecting Families and Dads

This year HUD expects to go one step further and place Father's Day in a larger context.
While we still want PHAs to work toward increasing the bonds between fathers and their
children throughout the year, we are suggesting that in addition to hosting a Father's Day
event in June, participating PHAs hold ongoing activities that could serve to connect fathers
and their children. For example, dads can plan to volunteer at their children’s schools,
including attending Parent’s Night when school opens, or help coordinate Mother's Day
events. To capture this expanded vision the Department is calling this initiative
Reconnecting Families and Dads (RFD).

Why is HUD Focusing on Fatherhood?

In line with HUD’s 2010-2015 Strategic Plan Goal 3: “using housing as a platform to
improve the quality of life of our residents,” this focus on fatherhood in public housing flows
from current statistics that show fathers are absent. The majority of public housing
households with children are headed by single women who earn less than $9,000 annually.
While fathers are often present in and around public housing developments, most of them
are not officially on the household’s lease and are often disconnected from services that
could lead to economic stability for themselves and their children.

Adapted from the NYCHA Fatherhood Initiative, HUD’s Father’s Day Initiative was developed
in response to the stark socio-economic data indicating how children and youth are being
negatively affected by father-absent homes. Last year, the first year HUD kicked-off the
Father's Day initiative, 209 PHAs from 33 states held Father’s Day events that combined
supportive services with promoting fatherhood to strengthen families. An estimated 22,000
fathers, children, mothers and many others participated in events that local public housing
authorities held all over the nation. Local offices of federal agencies, including the U.S.
Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, Agriculture, Education and Justice,
offered on-site information and services such as employment resources, healthcare
consultation and legal counseling at the events. In some cities, participants met athletes
from the NFL and NBA, who joined in on the fun, while the Read it LOUD! Foundation
distributed more than 1,600 free children’s books to housing authorities that participated.

For further information or to register, please see www.hud.gov/fathersday2012.



FACT SHEET

The Department of Housing and Urban Development heid its inaugural Father’s Day event on June 18, 2011. Inline
with HUD’s Goal 3: “Using housing as a platform to improve the quality of life of our residents,” Father’s Day 2012
will bring together federal agencies, local government agencies and non-profits, national sports franchises and
public housing authorities to create a day for fathers to bond with their children while learning about a range of
available services.

Last year’s event was a huge success! 209 Public Housing Authorities representing 33 states held Father’s Day
events and an estimated 22,000 fathers, children, mothers and others in the community came together in support
of fatherhood. This year with your help we can achieve event greater success!

Visit hud.gov/fathersday2012 to:
e Learn about our new initiative Reconnecting Families and Dads

* Obtain more resources for planning your event, including information on participating partners
Watch our Father’s Day 2011 video

Planning to participate? Register your PHA for Father’s Day 2012 at http://www.hud.gov/fathersday2012/register.cfm.
When registering:

© Please be sure to complete all fields carefull

© Please do not register your housing authority more than once

Father’s Day 2012 partnership: Are you looking for resources or partners for your event? HUD has partnered with
the National Fatherhood Initiative with local chapter organizations across the country. Check out the map of
organizations working at the local level at http://fatherhood.gov/

© Questions? Contact the Father’s Day Team at PIH_Fathers_Day_2012@HUD.gov —we look forward to
hearing from you!


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U.S, DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT

THE SECRETARY
WASHINGTON, DC 20410-6001

Dear Executive Director:

Last year, HUD asked the Nation’s public housing authorities (PHAs) to sponsor a one-
day Father’s Day 2011 event in mid-June, and more than 200 PHAs hosted events. PHAs across
the Country held a wide range of exciting events — from fun activities for the family to job
training resources for the Dads — and brought together thousands of participants. No matter the
variety of events, the goal was the same: to connect fathers and their children. This year, the
Department wants to once again invite you to host a Father’s Day 2012 event on Saturday,
June 16.

Despite all of the successful events last year, it is evident that more fathers need to be
connected with their families. The numbers show that HUD and the PHAs can and must do
more, given that more than 24 million children live apart from their biological fathers. »Nearly
2 in 3 (64 percent) African-American children live in father-absent homes, and | in 3 (34
percent) Hispanic children and 1 in 4 (25 percent) White children also live in father-absent
homes. Studies show that the children suffer greatly when there is no father present.

Children who live absent their biological fathers are, on average, at least 2 to 3 times
more likely to use drugs; to experience educational, health, emotional, and behavioral problems;
to be victims of child abuse; and to engage in criminal behavior than their peers who live with
their married, biological (or adoptive) parents. What’s more, a child with a nonresident father is
54 percent more likely to be poorer than his or her father.

HUD received valuable feedback from PHAs that participated in Father’s Day 2011. As
part of the feedback, PHAs requested that HUD increase its efforts to obtain resources for future
events. As a result, the Department is now working with national organizations, including other
federal agencies, to make this a reality. HUD staff recently addressed more than 200 Healthy
Marriage and Responsible Fatherhood grantees at a U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services conference, and they are all very eager to connect with you on Father’s Day 2012. In
addition, HUD is putting the finishing touches on a video and a toolkit that every PHA can use to
generate excitement for its event.

www.hud.gov espanol-hud.goy


Like last year, HUD asks that you register your event at www.hud. gov/fathersday2012.
Together, the Department and the’ PHAs can build on last year’s events and make Father’s Day
2012 a rousing success!

Sincerely,

haun Donovan