All around the country, fathers and their kids celebrated their unconditional love for each other on Fathers Day. Unfortunately, for many in the District of Columbia, children are without fathers. In some cases, dads are in jail or were murdered. In other cases, they simple choose not to be a part of their kids' lives and upbringing. No matter the reason, Fathers Day should remind us that many youth of this city desperately need our help.
The government cannot create fathers. All the money in the world will not create never-formed or broken bonds. But several groups of courageous and dedicated black men in the District have come together to create organizations that mentor children and steer them away from violence and crime. Yesterday, two such groups, Peaceoholics and Cease Fire, held a special Fathers Day cookout and baseball game for kids whose fathers are not there for them.
The baseball game featured my team, the "new school" Peaceoholics, coached by co-founders Jauhar Abraham and Ronald Motten, against the "old school" Madness, coached by Cease Fire founder Al-Malik Farrakhan. We were sure we were going to win, but at the end of the game, we were beaten by the "old school" brothers 20-0!!! I have never been so surprised, but Al-Malik fielded an amazing team.
Today, I was reminded again of two things:
1) There are great people doing great things in this community, doing everything they can to save and support our youth.
2) Respect our elders. Not only do they have the ability to make a difference in our community, but they are very good at baseball!
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