News From HelpForDaddy

Hell Hath No Fury...so Proves Elizabeth Edwards

Fri, 2 Jul 2010 16:19:15 -0700

This story has been plucked from the pages of iVillage.com and has struck a chord with many people, not least dads!
There is no doubt that most people, rightly so, feel sympathy for soon-to-be-ex Mrs Edwards. Her husband was unfaithful during a very rough part of her life as she dealt with cancer. She wants a divorce, and few could argue against her reasoning for that.
However, the inflammatory statements she makes below makes my support and sympathy wane, as I see far too often she now considers her three children “hers” and is clearly using them as a weapon. To dictate to Mr. Edwards who will raise the kids, or to be clearer, who will NOT, is just disgusting. She has decided that as he cheated on her, he cheated on them, and to hell with him!
Well, here is the tough part, and it’s not easy to hear. Husbands (and wives) cheat on their partners...they don’t cheat on their children. I can certainly sympathize with those in the camp that say if you step outside the marriage that hurts everyone. Of course it does. However, many spouses stray for many different reasons, but when you think about it rationally, few do it ‘because of the children’.
Mrs Edwards has no right to dictate to the children’s father who he shall see, who he shall choose as a potential partner, and who, ultimately, could be the stepmother of her children.
Mrs Edwards...I understand what you’re going through first hand, and I truly do believe it is the “hurt” that is coming out and talking for you in this scenario. The facts are however, that Mr. Edwards (cheating bastard as he may be!) is their father, and he has equal rights with his children as you do!

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Elizabeth Edwards has been battling cancer since 2004, and according to the New York Daily News, her condition has reportedly "taken a turn for the worse lately." The News says that Edwards, 60, has started to consider the question of her children's guardianship in the event of her death. Normally, young children who've lost a parent are placed in custody of the surviving parent. But sources say that Elizabeth is determined to keep the children out of estranged husband John Edwards' home -- for fear that Rielle Hunter would end up raising them.   According to the News, Elizabeth Edwards wants her oldest daughter Cate to take care of Emma, 12, and Jack, 10, if she should pass away. Cate is only 28, but she has a steady legal job at a federal court in Virginia, owns her own home and is in a long-term relationship. Still -- even if Cate is a suitable guardian, the children's father has the right to custody, unless he's determined "unfit" by a court of law. Although John has made some bad decisions (like, say, having unprotected sex with his mistress during a Presidential campaign and lying to the nation about his paternity when a baby was born to his mistress), he's traditionally been a fairly upstanding member of society in many other regards -- so it's unlikely that Elizabeth would be able to find a legal loophole to keep the children out of his care.   For what it's worth, Elizabeth's sister, Nancy Anania Sims, denies that Elizabeth's health is deteriorating -- but she doesn't deny that Elizabeth may be looking for custody options outside of John, saying, "There are a lot of family members who are willing and able."   John Edwards, 56, is the father of a 2-year-old daughter with his mistress Hunter, now 46. The couple has announced no plans to marry, although according to the New York Times, Edwards once told Hunter that he would marry her in a rooftop ceremony after his wife died. The Edwardses are legally separated and, per North Carolina law, can divorce in 2011.

Read More http://www.ivillage.com/elizabeth-edwards-wont-let-rielle-hunter-raise-her-kids/1-a-190496#ixzz0tnQTAm6J

Father’s Day Photography Event - DONE!

Mon, 21 Jun 2010 09:31:48 -0700

What a great day yesterday was! Waking up early and looking outside was enough to dampen even the most determined spirits. Pouring rain when we were about to embark on a day of outdoor photography! We packed the rain gear, and got the canopies out, and headed to Washington Park in Portland, unaware of what to expect!

The dads didn’t disappoint!

From the moment we ‘opened the doors’ at 11am right through until we closed up at 3pm the families were rolling through the event and getting their pictures taken by Rachel Hawkins (shivering and damp!) from Love Raen Photography!

In the space of those four hours, we had over 30 families come on out and get portraits done! It was great! We had candy for the kids, coffee for the grown ups and Rachel took close to 1,000 photographs (yes, that’s THREE zeros!) of everyone out there!

This was a fun event for all of the HelpForDaddy team, and we are very excited to be involved with Rachel in our next project, too. It’s a pinup calendar...with a twist. Stay tuned for more on that!

For those of you who braved the elements, you should be receiving your CDs with photos on them within the next 2 - 3 weeks, and we’ll have some of the best ones up here for everyone to see!

The Secret to Happiness - Speak to Your Dad

Fri, 18 Jun 2010 09:48:52 -0700

Young people who said they talked seriously to their dads "most days" gave themselves an 87 per cent score on a happiness scale compared with 79 per cent for those who said they hardly ever spoke to their fathers in this way.

The findings, from an analysis of research from the British Household Panel survey into 1,200 young people in Britain aged between 11 and 15, were released by the Children's Society to coincide with Father's Day this weekend.

Nearly half of young people - 46 per cent - said they "hardly ever" spoke to their fathers about important topics compared with 28 per cent who hardly ever spoke to their mothers about the things that matter most.

Only 13 per cent confided in their father "most days", according to the analysis.
The study, commissioned by the Children's Society and undertaken by the University of York, showed that young people talk less to their fathers about important issues as they get older.

The data showed 42 per cent of 11-year-olds did so more than once a week compared with 16% of 15-year-olds.

The analysis suggested there has been little change over the years with the same proportion - 30 per cent - of young people talking to their fathers about something that mattered to them more than once a week in 2007-08 as in 2002-03.

The charity said the findings were "highly significant" as academic research has shown that a child's well-being later in life depends on their teenage relationship with their father as well as with their mother.

It launched a Fatherhood Commission with children, experts and the public invited to submit evidence about the barriers to fathers' involvement with their children.
Bob Reitemeier, chief executive of the Children's Society, said: "This research shows that young people's happiness is closely linked to how often they speak to their fathers about things that matter.

"Yet all too often these days, children are becoming alienated or live apart from their fathers.

"That is why the Children's Society is today calling on children, experts and the general public to submit evidence to our new Fatherhood Review.

"It will be investigating the extent to which fathers are involved in the everyday aspects of their children's lives and in the autumn we will publish recommendations on how the obstacles to better father-child relationships might be overcome."

Courtesy of telegraph.co.uk
By Richard Alleyne, Science Correspondent Published: 12:01AM BST 18 Jun 2010

Photography Event - Directions!

Thu, 17 Jun 2010 12:21:12 -0700

The Oregon Zoo is located at 4001 SW Canyon Road, Portland, Oregon, 97221.
A link to the google map page can be found here. You can view our exact location inside the Zoo on the third of the three maps below. We are marked with the “A” symbol.

We are located past the Forestry Center on the left side. We will be close to the road, so look for us, and our tent!

Hope to see you there!

Father’s Day Photography Event

Wed, 16 Jun 2010 12:33:13 -0700

Only a few more days to go until our Father’s Day Photography Event.

Join us up at the Zoo on Sunday at 11am and get your photograph taken with your whole family!

Counseling Sessions Start Up Again

Tue, 15 Jun 2010 14:02:03 -0700

Calling All Dads,

The second Dads Counseling Group will begin on Tuesday, June 22nd, from 6-7:15 pm at Portland State University's Community Counseling Clinic.

Please call the clinic and leave a message indicating your interest no later than Monday, June 21st, at noon. 503.725.4620. You will receive a return phone call from one of the group leaders who will give you more specific information about the group location.

Cost for the group is $10 per group session, but several reduced fee slots are available for $5 a session - just let us know if you would like the reduced fee. Obviously everyone would 'like' the fee, but please consider if you can "really" afford the $10 instead of the $5. This fee covers the time of the leaders of the group, and that means more services for us.

Participants should plan to attend the group weekly, same day and time. Priority will be given to those who can attend all six weeks, rather than sporadic attendance.

Radio Spot on KXL

Mon, 14 Jun 2010 12:38:15 -0700

HelpForDaddy’s Executive and Founder, Simon Date, was featured on KXL Radio in the Portland area for a quick interview and media blast for the organization this morning.

With Father’s Day coming up, and the exciting photography shoot we have planned it was an opportunity to talk about the overall mission of HelpForDaddy and let people know what we do and that we’re out there!

To listen to the radio interview, click the link to the right.

Everest College...They Rock!

Fri, 11 Jun 2010 09:34:47 -0700

Its started last month when, out of the blue, we got an email from Florice Lim at Everest College.

She mentioned they were having a clothing drive, and had seen what we were doing at HelpForDaddy and wanted to make us the recipients. Of course we were delighted to accept and after exchanging a few emails back and forth, realized we were dealing with more than just a simple pick up.

They gathered clothing for over a month, from their families and friends, and on Wednesday, June 8th, we took the delivery suburban down to their college’s loading area at 425 SW Washington, in Portland, OR.

We were greeted by the entire team, and picked up almost 1,000 pieces of clothing, in what was, to date, our biggest single donation since HelpForDaddy started! Simply incredible. We were warned it was “quite a few bags of clothing” by Florice, but had no idea it would be that much! We literally filled the Suburban.

Our thanks go out to the entire team at Everest College, pictured below, and team leader Florice, for their very generous donation. We are also in talks with them now about starting an internship program in the coming months for their accounting teams.

Help us Let Dads Know!

Tue, 8 Jun 2010 14:01:50 -0700

Chances are, everyone knows a dad! I mean, come on...you know LOTS of dads. Your own for starters. Your brother, your uncle, neighbor, and perhaps even your own husband!

We’d love for each person reading this right now to become an ambassador for HelpForDaddy ONE TIME ONLY!

Please take the time to make that father you know aware of our photography event this Father’s Day! Simply print out the flyer to the right by clicking it and giving it to them, or emailing them the link to the page!

Another way, is by printing out the flyer and posting it on a local community board at your library. Perhaps your local grocery store has a bulletin board (all Fred Meyer’s do!). Maybe your work place has a little area where this posting might be appropriate. Please, help us get the word out to all fathers in the Portland area.

Our Father’s Day FREE photography event is for ALL dads, divorced or not. Simply show up with your family and get free portraits done, courtesy of HelpForDaddy and LoveRaen photography! Our only rule is that there has to be a dad in the portrait!

For complete details visit the info page here!

Fundraiser at Chevys

Mon, 7 Jun 2010 13:28:02 -0700

We are very excited to announce a new partnership with Chevys Fresh Mex in Lake Oswego!

Invite everyone you know to come out and dine with you at Chevys Mexican Restaurant in Lake Oswego, on Sunday June 27th, 2010, and 25% of the proceeds goes right back to Help for Daddy!!

It’s that simple! The only rule is that you have to bring in the flyer with you when you come. NOTE: you’ll still get great food without the flyer but won’t be contributing to HelpForDaddy without it!

To copy the flyer, simply click the copy to the right of the page, and print out the new window that will pop up.

Make as many copies as you like, and please make your friends and family aware of this great event. The more the merrier! We will be letting you know how much we raised after the event!

Where:
Chevys Fresh Mex
14991 Bangy Rd
Lake Oswego, OR 97035
503-620-7700

Their menu can be found here!

All you have to do is:

- Print the flyer to the right of the page and bring with you the day of the event
- Eat yummy food at L.O. Chevys anytime the day of the event
- Give the server the flyer when you pay your ticket
- Help for Daddy gets a check the next day for 25% of the days proceeds

We’d love to know if you are coming or not. Feel free to find more info on our meet up page. Note that being a member of the meetup page is NOT required to participate!

Learn more here:
http://www.meetup.com/HelpForDaddy/calendar/13727760/