When the opportunity arises to inspire the next generation, will anyone answer the call? That’s the question children’s advocate Kristina Dove must have asked herself when she put out a request for volunteers on social media. Billy Earl Dade Middle School in Dallas was hosing its annual “Breakfast With Dads” event, but the organizers feared that attendance would be low, so they went in search of a few men to act as stand-in dads. The Facebook post was shared again and again, and a whopping 600 men responded, exceeding Doves’ wildest expectations and forcing the school to move the event from the cafeteria to the gymnasium. The surrogate dads didn’t arrive empty-handed, either. They brought extra ties along to teach the boys an important life skill that every man must have. The ties were just the beginning. The 600 men in the room also brought lifetimes of passion, experience, compassion and inspiration to a group of young men, many of whom didn’t have positive male role models in their lives. The event truly took a community to make it a success, and it meant as much to the mentors as it did to the students.
