KSC Celebrates Fathers at Family Day

There were a lot of changes that Tim made (and families experienced) over the year since from his first visit to Recreation to his first Spring Family Day on June 17th that added an extra layer to our celebration. Instead of celebrating his incredible discipline and visionary work modifying the travel and recreation programs, Tim celebrated the supportive parents who weathered the journey. In Tim’s welcoming remarks he noted that there were a variety of awesome Fathers who showed up weekly to bring their children to recreation programs and cheer them on. As Tim got up to speak, he announced his own son made a milestone. We were all reminded that yes, he is our trailblazing Travel and Recreation Director, but he is also a father who is creating programs that he would want his son to attend.

Tim is aware of a a variety of negative representations proliferate in the media about Kensington, and relatedly about Black Fathers. Social policy initiatives in the ‘60s attributed the problems low income Black people faced in urban neighborhoods to the lack of “present Fathers”. Some of our most prominent Black leaders and social commentators have made similar claims about the impact of absent fathers on children’s social, professional, and emotional development. Even presently, many of our social issues relating to additction, violence, and incarceration are informed by research that relegates Black parenting as the root cause of many social issues. While Tim was simply acknowledging the incredible commitment of some fathers, his gesture cast Black and other Fathers in a positive light.

The Fathers in our organization represent a large tapestry of identities. Some have lived in the neighborhood, and others have migrated through work, relationships, and other reasons. KSC represents a small microcosm of a larger diverse city. The fathers that Tim invited to stage as well as the larger group of parents he interacts with during the program sessions reflect a large tapestry of identities and experiences. As such, it was great to hear from the Fathers (as well as Brothers, Uncles, Cousins, Grandparents, and caregivers) about how the program made a positive impact in their children’s lives.

Stepping back, I got to speak with one of the Fathers who Tim invited to the stage. His wife’s family is from Kensington and he moved to the neighborhood to build his family. As a Black Father with Black sons he noted the importance of having a safe program for children that teaches them discipline. Furthermore, it is important to have a Black man in the community leading these efforts because it is important for people to see positive examples of leaders locally.

So this past Family Day, as music played by Coach (and sometimes DJ) Jim Breslin blared down N. Orianna and York Streets; SAVE Volunteers handed out books to children of all ages; KSC staff danced around while distributing pretzels; and our favorite coaches and soccer players faced off in pick-up games all across Casiano Field, we celebrated an incredible Spring season. More importantly we honored the incredible changes made within our organization and how they project the beautiful attributes of the community we serve.

Registration is now open for the Kensington Juniors Program. Our newly designed recreation program is a 10-week program that provides skill development based on a curriculum created by experienced soccer coaches.