South Carolina Center for Fathers and Families celebrates grand opening of new location

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Tags: South Carolina Center for Fathers and Families , Outreach

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The South Carolina Center for Fathers and Families recently held a ribbon cutting ceremony for its new fatherhood program in Aiken, South Carolina. The office, which is part of the Midlands Fatherhood Coalition, has been operating in the community since April and has 24 participants in its program.

The expansion to Aiken is the result of a partnership between the center, the Midlands Fatherhood Coalition and the South Carolina Department of Social Services (DSS), as well as the support of the Aiken County School District’s Adult Education department, SC Works of Lower Savannah, the Salvation Army, and Aiken city and county governments.

The Midlands Fatherhood Coalition has offices in Fairfield, Lexington and Richland counties, in addition to the Aiken County office. The coalition has a 24-week program that focuses on three areas: parenting, healthy relationships and financial stability.

“It's not just about paying child support, it's also about growing as a father,” said Mike Croft, program specialist in the Aiken office. “We want to make sure that our participants understand that there are benefits for being engaged in their children's lives.”

The South Carolina Center for Fathers and Families supports six fatherhood programs in 12 communities across the state, while promoting father-friendly policies and practices and helping to erase society's negative stereotypes of unwed, low-income dads. The center is a ministry of the Sisters of Charity Health System.

Pictured: Katie Morgan of DSS, the center’s Pat Littlejohn, Aiken City Councilwoman Gail Diggs and Angela McDuffie of the Midlands Fatherhood Coalition cut the ribbon at the grand opening.