News  Barnstable County Fatherhood Program celebrates 25 years of reconnecting fathers with their children

The Massachusetts Trial Court’s longest, continuously running Fatherhood Program in the state, the Barnstable County Fatherhood Program, will celebrate its role in reconnecting fathers and their children at the program’s 25th Annual Graduation Dinner on Tuesday, June 13th, at the Barnstable County Court Complex in the Barnstable County Harbor View Conference Room.

The Fatherhood Programs, run by the Massachusetts Probation Service, includes four across the state which are located in Barnstable, Norfolk, Middlesex, and Suffolk counties.

These programs have helped more than 3,000 fathers learn important parenting skills and improve or re-establish their relationships with their children. The Barnstable County Fatherhood Program will celebrate graduates of the program and its role as MPS’ first and longest and continuously running Fatherhood Program in the Massachusetts Trial Court and possibly the state.

Fathers, program facilitators, court and community leaders will join together to mark this milestone. Pamerson Ifill, Deputy Commissioner-Pretrial Services, will serve as the keynote speaker. Eight fathers are scheduled to graduate from the program during the ceremony scheduled four days before Father’s Day, June 17th, this year.

The Barnstable County Fatherhood Program was established several years after the national Fatherhood Initiative, and later similar programs and efforts that promote the involvement of fathers in their children’s lives. The National Fatherhood Initiative is also the leading provider of research on father involvement and evidence-based fatherhood programs. The Barnstable program has graduated approximately 300 fathers, impacting 635 children. 

“Our program has been running continuously, including during the Pandemic when we used Zoom,” said R Wayne Chase, Orleans District Court Chief Probation Officer and one of the program’s long-time facilitators.

The Barnstable Fatherhood Program is typically 12 weeks long and features a series of workshops, presentations, and discussion groups. Topics highlighted in these sessions include child development, communications skills, domestic and family violence, men’s health, substance abuse, employment, education, and legal matters such as child support. Judges, clergy, social service providers and representatives from state agencies such as the Department of Revenue are among the guest speakers. In addition to Chief Chase, the other Barnstable Fatherhood Program facilitators include Christopher Hercun, Barnstable Family and Probate Assistant Chief Probation Officer; Christopher Martin, Barnstable Family and Probate ACPO, and Brendan Lucey, Barnstable Superior ACPO.

“I’ve really gotten a lot out of participating in the program. I am in a much better place in my relationship with my children and the program has taught me that it is important to show respect to the mother of my children and that the children’s best interest is what is most important in the long run,” said Peter, who did not wish to have his last name published.

The Fatherhood Program is based on five principles which are incorporated in the weekly meetings. Fathers are required to learn the five principles which they recite at the start of each session. They are often called upon to provide examples of these principles which serve as the foundation of the program.

As a Father it is my responsibility to:

• Give affection to my children.
• Give gentle guidance to my children.
• Provide financial support to my children and the mother of my children.
• Demonstrate respect at all times to the mother of my children.
• Set a proud example for my children by living within the law and without the taint of alcohol/ drug abuse. What is the Fatherhood Program.

The Fatherhood Program was first introduced in 1994 by former Norfolk Juvenile Chief Probation Officer Thomas Mitchell and Deputy Commissioner Steve Bocko who created the program to teach offenders to be positive and attentive parents to their children. Mr. Mitchell and Mr. Bocko are now retired. Chief Mitchell said he found a common thread among court-involved men which he described as "the absence of the father in the individual’s life.”

More than 3,000 fathers have graduated from the Fatherhood programs since Mitchell first introduced it in MPS. There are currently four Fatherhood Programs across the state, including Barnstable County, Quincy District Court, Lowell District and one Nurturing Fathers Program in Suffolk County.