DADS and MOMS of Michigan eNewsletter
April 2008
Your volunteer efforts are incredible. New legislation was introduced on protecting families; however that is the mission of DADS of Michigan PAC. DADS and MOMS of Michigan and Dads and Moms University are focused on delivering services to help families and are growing.
We educate over 200 families each month and growing with more than 20,000 constituents. By the end of 2008, we will have 40,000.
Dads and Moms of Michigan has grown its focus on education to expand education programs around the state. We meet monthly with the Board of DADS and MOMS University and recruited more staff to teach classes. We have partnered with some new groups. For information and to help, call 248-559-DADS (3237). Sign up for our eNewsletter at www.dadsofmichigan.org
Dads and Moms University Presents
GUEST SPEAKER: OAKLAND COUNTY PROSECUTOR,
FAMILY DIVISION CHIEF: DAVID CASE
DADS OF MICHIGAN FAMILY FORUM
BIRMINGHAM COMMUNITY HOUSE,
380 S BATES, BIRMINGHAM,MI 48009
| 7:00 - 7:30: |
Dads Presentation |
| 7:30 - 8:30: |
Topic, Candidate Forum |
| 8:30 - 9:30: |
LEGAL ROUNDTABLE |
| For information, call 248-559 DADS (3237) |
May 6, 2008: 7:00 PM
Dads and Moms University Launches Love and Logic, June 2008
http://www.loveandlogic.com/
Dads and Moms University has launched Love and Logic to help parents focus on the welfare and best interest of the children. The 6 session program offers a certificate of completion and best in class instruction on how to get your children to do what you expect them to do. Call 248-559-3237 for more information.
Site, First Session Day/Time and Presenter
NORTH FARMINGTON HIGH SCHOOL 32900 West Thirteen Mile Road
Farmington Hills, Michigan
June 4, 2008
6pm-8pm
http://www.farmington.k12.mi.us/nfhs
Registration Fee for the Program
(Includes Materials and Workbook)
$80.00 per person
* Registration fee must be paid in advance of the start date
Fathers Day Picnic
WHEN:
Saturday, June 14
12 noon – 5pm
WHERE:
Halmich Park in Warren, MI
13 Mile btw. Dequindre & Ryan Roads
COST:
$5 per adult; $1 for 18 & under
Special Celebrity Speaker !!!! Roger McFail
Join us in the park for:
- Food & Fun
- Games & Music
- volleyball, horseshoes, frisbee & more...
- arts & crafts + a playscape for the kids
- Honoring Ceremony for Dads!
Bring picnic food or a snack to share
Hot Dogs & other grill-friendly food,
plus non-alcoholic beverages, provided
(pets & alcoholic beverages not allowed at park)
Contact us if you have questions and/or to let us know you’re coming:
Hotline: 248-559-3237 or Dave Jacobs:
windsordetroit@mkp.org
http://www.dadsofmichigan.org/docs/FathersDayPicnic.doc
2008 Bike Trek to Washington, DC
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YyRxUYIjSfc&NR=1
http://cycling4children.typepad.com/cycling4childrencom/2008biketrek.html
The Equal Parenting Bike Trek is more than just an event that is gaining both traditional and new media coverage. It is an incredible and inspirational human interest story about the lengths fathers will go to say, "You Can Always Count on Daddy"!
How many of you have actually taken the brief 1-2 mins max to send an email to the Jeff Rense Program asking them to cover the 2008 Equal Parenting Bike Trek. Contact the Jeff Rense Program at webmaster@rense.com
TOP Videos
Music celebrity Bob Geld of On Fathers in Britain
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g-MGHd5rz84
Robert Pederson and Equal Parenting
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4XK1w5bt5Mc&feature=email
A Daughter/Stepmom Speaks Out
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YyRxUYIjSfc&NR=1
TOP Links
Divorce Reform
http://www.reformdivorce.com/
Baskerville on Divorce
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=62594
Letter To The Editors (Newspapers)
https://www.quickbase.com/db/bbv3cxh9m?a=q&qid=1
Major Michigan Newspapers
https://www.quickbase.com/db/97t48ukt?a=q&qid=10
Major Michigan Radio Stations
https://www.quickbase.com/db/97t48ukt?a=q&qid=12
Major Michigan Television Stations
https://www.quickbase.com/db/97t48ukt?a=q&qid=13
April 25th is Parental Alienation Awareness Day
http://daddy.typepad.com/daddyblog/2008/04/parental-aliena.html
You have the responsibility of telling others that April 25 is Parental Alienation Awareness Day! Parental Alienation is all too common now during and after divorces where children are involved. Essentially the parent which attempts to alienate the other parent is too consumed in their hatred towards the ex-spouse to even realize the tremendous damage they are doing to their own children. Parental Alienation can be subtle or openly pursued. Mothers and Fathers can both be responsible for Parental Alienation. They do not love their children enough to place aside their hatred towards their ex-spouse.
Moms and Dads aren't the only ones which can use parental alienation tactics. Grandparents can become child abusers as well by bad mouthing the father in front of the children. It is all too common to find that they were responsible for parental alienation towards their own children if there was a divorce in the mix. Sadly, they can shape their own children to be adults that use parental alienation tactics. Children of divorce have already been through enough and will have many additional challenges just because of their parents getting a divorce. Parents and grandparents should love their children/grandchildren enough to eliminate any form of parental alienation.
Parental Alienation is indeed child abuse! A few examples of Parental Alienation can be: 1) Mom tells Dad he is a "deadbeat dad" in front of the children. 2) Mom refuses to allow meaningful time for Dad to form an appropriate parent-child relationship which includes nuturing, educating, reading, loving, guiding, playing games and toys with the child, etc. 3) Mom allows her friends that visit to speak poorly about the Dad in front of the children with no correction by Mom. 4) Bad mouthing or undermining the other parent in front of the children. 5) Mom tells children that Dad did not call when he actually did to say goodnight, talk briefly, etc. To clarify again - both genders are capable of parental alienation.
Marriage Breakdown Costs Taxpayers at Least $112 Billion a Year. First-Time Research Reveals Staggering Annual Taxpayer Costs for Divorce and Unwed Childbearing
http://www.americanvalues.org/
Contact: Sheila Weber, Director of Communications
12:01 A.M., April 15, 2008 sheila@americanvalues.org; 646-322-6853
WASH. D.C. In first-ever research, a new report quantifies a minimum $112 billion annual taxpayer cost from high rates of divorce and unmarried childbearing. It identifies national, state and local costs which account for more than $1 trillion in the last decade. This landmark scholarly study, entitled "The Taxpayer Costs of Divorce and Unwed Childbearing: First-Ever Estimates for the Nation and All 50 States," was released on April 15th at the National Press Club by four renowned policy and research groups—Institute for American Values, Georgia Family Council, Institute for Marriage and Public Policy, and Families Northwest.
"This study documents for the first time, that divorce and unwed childbearing—besides being bad for children—are also costing taxpayers a ton of money," said David Blankenhorn, president of the Institute for American Values. "Even a small improvement in the health of marriage in America would result in enormous savings to taxpayers," he continued. "For example, a 1 percent reduction in rates of family fragmentation would save taxpayers $1.1 billion."
"These costs are due to increased taxpayer expenditures for anti-poverty, criminal justice and education programs, and through lower levels of taxes paid by individuals whose adult productivity has been negatively affected by increased childhood poverty caused by family fragmentation," said principal investigator Ben Scafidi, Ph.D., economics professor at Georgia College & State University.
"Prior research shows that marriage lifts single mothers out of poverty and therefore reduces the need for costly social benefits," said Scafidi. "This new report shows that public concern about the decline of marriage need not be based only on ‘moral’ concerns, but that reducing high taxpayer costs of family fragmentation is a legitimate concern of government, policymakers and legislators, as well as community reformers and faith communities."
"This report now provides the basis for a national consensus that strengthening marriage is a legitimate policy concern," said Blankenhorn. "The report’s numbers represent an extremely cautious estimate, a lower-bound figure, and have been vetted by a group of distinguished scholars and economists who have attached their names as advisors to this report."
"These numbers represent real people and real suffering," said Randy Hicks, president of Georgia Family Council. "Both economic and human costs make family fragmentation a legitimate public concern. Historically, Americans have resisted the impulse to surrender to negative and hurtful trends. We fight problems like racism, poverty and domestic violence because we understand that the stakes are high. And while we’ll never eliminate divorce and unwed childbearing entirely, we can certainly be doing more to help marriages and families succeed."
All Pro Dads and IMOM
http://imom.com/index_home.php
http://www.allprodad.com/
The self-esteem extreme
Beginning in the early 1980s, child development specialists encouraged parents to build their children’s self-esteem by giving them lavish amounts of praise. The only problem, writes Sharon Jayson in USA Today, is that "life will burst your self-esteem bubble." Jayson reports that the self-esteem movement created an environment that protected children from failure, consequently keeping them from learning some very basic life skills and lessons essential to their development.
Much of the self-esteem movement has taught kids to be self-centered, not others-centered. You know what really fills a child’s soul with contentment? It’s knowing what their gifts are, having them refined by you and then using them to benefit others. It’s not all about them. Kids wrapped up in themselves make small packages indeed.
DOING WHAT THEY DON’T WANT TO DO
Tom Landry, coach of the Dallas Cowboys for almost three decades, said, "The job of a football coach is to make men do what they don’t want to do in order to achieve what they’ve always wanted to be. "That’s great stuff. The same is true of being a parent. Most of the time, your children don’t want to do what you tell them to do, but, if you’re thoughtful about the rules you set and the expectations you have of them, they can achieve far more than they can imagine. Don’t be discouraged if your kids are continually giving you a bad attitude about "how much they have to work around here." Work and responsibility chisel away rough edges and hew a soul full of light and beauty.
Learn how to avoid the Chore Wars - http://www.allprodad.com/playbook/viewarticle.php?art=339
Tune In and Take Action in Michigan
Get Off The Bench TalkShoe
Hosted by Bob Norton and Larry Holland
Sunday evenings at 8:00 pm
Wednesday evenings at 8:30 pm
To participate:
Dial: (724) 444-7444
Enter: 43507 # (Talkcast ID)
Enter: 1 # or your PIN
Join: http://www.talkshoe.com/talkshoe/web/userCreate1.jsp
Download: http://www.talkshoe.com/talkshoe/web/Downloads.jsp
Listen: http://www.talkshoe.com/talkshoe/web/tscmd/tc/43507
Show Archive: http://www.getyourjusticelive.com
ChildrenNeedBothParents TalkShoe
Hosted by Ron Smith and Rockin Robin Denison
Thursdays evenings at 9:00 pm
To participate:
Dial: (724) 444-7444
Enter: 53118 # (Talkcast ID)
Enter: 1 # or your PIN
Join: http://www.talkshoe.com/talkshoe/web/userCreate1.jsp
Download: http://www.talkshoe.com/talkshoe/web/Downloads.jsp
Listen: http://www.talkshoe.com/talkshoe/web/tscmd/tc/53118
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DADS Merchandise
Consider ordering some DADS merchandise for your favorite DAD this holiday season. Soon we will be adding MOMS merchandise. Sorry Moms, Stepparents and Grandparents, you are as important. http://www.dadsofmichigan.org/merchandise.html
Dads and Moms of Michigan (www.dadsofmichigan.org) includes Dads of Michigan, Moms of Michigan, and Dads of Michigan PAC. These are volunteer responsible parenthood education organizations for fathers and mothers. They instruct on the importance of involved biological parents to the successful development of their children. Dads of Michigan PAC is an independent volunteer political advocacy group dedicated to legislation keeping both biological parents actively engaged in the lives of their children despite divorce and custody, in most instances. They believe men and women should be viewed equally under the law and their credo is: "fathers are responsible parents too...because the best parent is both parents." Dads of Michigan, the Michigan affiliate of the American Coalition for Fathers and Children, is also the developer of the Dads and Moms University of responsible education for teenage, divorced, and unmarried parents. This educational program employs several features to either directly or indirectly benefit nearly 2 million men, women, and grandparents and just under one-half million children each year in Michigan. For more information, please contact us at (248) 559-DADS (3237) or email info@dadsofmichigan.org.
DADS and MOMS of Michigan Code of Ethics and Business Conduct.
"Fathers are responsible parents too...because the best parent is both parents"
