By Laurel Parker West | Vice President, National Programs
On Wednesday, March 4th, Baby Buggy held its Inaugural Los Angeles Fatherhood Lunch. We raised nearly $250,000 to fund our work with fathers across the country. Combined with the sum raised from the NYC Fatherhood Lunch in September, we have raised a total of close to $500,000 to help scale-up the Initiative and help even more low-income fathers.
Hosted by Jerry Seinfeld, the event was attended by notable fathers and men including Jason Alexander, Judd Apatow, Jason Bateman, Kevin Hart, Jay Leno, Bill Maher, Dax Shepard, Michael Richards, Bob Saget, James Van Der Beek, David Walton and George Wallace, who attended to show their support and raise awareness for the initiative.
We were also honored to have dads who are participants in our LA-based Fatherhood Programs attend the event to speak with guests about their journeys as fathers. Alan-Michael Graves, Project Fatherhood Director at Baby Buggy’s long-time partner Children’s Institute Inc., explained how the partnership with Baby Buggy allows non-custodial dads in Los Angeles to have more time to bond with their children, “Because of Baby Buggy, dads in our programs now have access to the key items they need for their children. Now, dad’s house has a crib, stroller, car seat, and diapers - just like at mom’s house.” Alan-Michael emphasized that Baby Buggy donations have a direct impact on increased fatherhood engagement and also help them recognize and applaud the achievements of low-income dads as they transform from less engaged fathers into hands-on dads.
Many thanks to Bruce Bozzi and The Palm for hosting and covering all costs for the lunch, to Dwyane Wade for providing the voiceover for our fatherhood video, and to our generous sponsors: Johnson & Johnson, rag & bone, and UTA, with additional support from Esquire.
We also want to thank YOU, our wonderful donors through Global Giving, who so generously support our work with low-income dads and their families throughout the year. We are so honored to have you as part of our growing Fatherhood Initiative!
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