A free parenting group · Santa Barbara & online
Fatherhood Forum
Supporting Fathers
Our culture is rapidly changing. Our fathers (if we had them) are not always available to provide the guidance that we need to raise the next generation with compassionate vision.
If there were a man brave enough to say, "I want to be a great father, but I don’t know how," to whom would he address the statement? The fatherhood forum provides a place for parents to ask important questions, and get support.
Gender alignment is not MANdatory
Intentional parenting by single mothers or by constellations of loving parents that differ from a heterosexual or binary model of “mom and dad” can be very successful.
I am proud to offer a space that welcomes queer-identifying parents so that they can be an integrated part of a whole culture that is committed to excellent parenting.
Celebrating Diversity
I am thrilled that this group is a home for enormously rich diversity. The parents who attend are from widely different cultures, races, ethnicities, and religious or non-religious orientations. There are parents who are divorced, differently-abled, neurodivergent or neurotypical. There are elders, uncles, mothers and others. Some portion of these people will be raising heterotypical, neurotypical boys and girls while some will be raising children who are outside of this model. The fatherhood forum celebrates the uniqueness in each participant and the uniqueness in their children.
More room for the conversation
Being a man. Being a parent.
Being yourself.
These pages explore concerns we can bring to individual therapy, alongside the conversations that begin in Fatherhood Forum.
Healthy Masculinity
Making room for strength, vulnerability, and a way of being a man that feels like your own.
Fatherhood
The parent you hope to be, the patterns you inherited, and the relationship you are building.
Men’s Health & Sexuality
Space to speak openly about your body, desire, intimacy, and change.
Joining the conversation
You don’t have to figure
parenting out alone.
When and where do we meet?
Fatherhood Forum is a free parenting group offered in Santa Barbara and online. The annual flyer lists specific dates for the monthly meetings, which are generally on the first Thursday of each month.
The meeting is held at 106 West Mission St., Santa Barbara, CA 93101.
Contact me for online joining details.
Who is welcome?
Expecting, recent, and seasoned fathers are welcome, as are other parents and caregivers who connect with these conversations. You don’t need to fit a particular gender, family structure, or picture of fatherhood to take part.
Would individual therapy be a better fit?
You may want a more personal space to explore parenting, relationships, identity, or concerns you would rather discuss individually. We can talk about what you’re looking for and which setting may fit.
Supporting Fathers
Our culture is rapidly changing. Our fathers (if we had them) are not always available to provide the guidance that we need to raise the next generation with compassionate vision.
If there were a man brave enough to say, "I want to be a great father, but I don’t know how," to whom would he address the statement? The fatherhood forum provides a place for parents to ask important questions, and get support.
Gender alignment is not MANdatory
Intentional parenting by single mothers or by constellations of loving parents that differ from a heterosexual or binary model of “mom and dad” can be very successful.
I am proud to offer a space that welcomes queer-identifying parents so that they can be an integrated part of a whole culture that is committed to excellent parenting.
Celebrating Diversity
I am thrilled that this group is a home for enormously rich diversity. The parents who attend are from widely different cultures, races, ethnicities, and religious or non-religious orientations. There are parents who are divorced, differently-abled, neurodivergent or neurotypical. There are elders, uncles, mothers and others. Some portion of these people will be raising heterotypical, neurotypical boys and girls while some will be raising children who are outside of this model. The fatherhood forum celebrates the uniqueness in each participant and the uniqueness in their children.
Being a father is an important job!
43% of US children live without their father [US Department of Census]
90% of homeless and runaway children are from fatherless homes. [US D.H.H.S., Bureau of the Census]
71% of pregnant teenagers lack a father. [U.S. Department of Health and Human Services press release, Friday, March 26, 1999]
63% of youth suicides are from fatherless homes. [US D.H.H.S., Bureau of the Census]
85% of children who exhibit behavioral disorders come from fatherless homes. [Center for Disease Control]
71% of high school dropouts come from fatherless homes. [National Principals Association Report on the State of High Schools]
70% of juveniles in state operated institutions have no father. [US Department of Justice, Special Report, Sept. 1988]
Fatherless boys and girls are: twice as likely to dropout of high school; twice as likely to end up in jail; four times more likely to need help for emotional or behavioral problems. [US D.H.H.S. news release, March 26, 1999]
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