Putting Children first while honoring Fathers and Mothers

It is said that being a parent is the most difficult job in the world and the one that most parents will tell you they love the best. Much research and attention has been devoted over many years to motherhood and its vital role in the rearing of children. Deaconess Children’s Services wholeheartedly acknowledges and supports this research. However, we all know that mothers cannot and should not be solely responsible for rearing the next generation of our society.

The statistics are staggering. Almost 24 million American children grow up in a home without a father and nearly half of those children have not seen their father in the previous year! To create a climate for men to remain involved with their children and be committed to providing financial support even if their adult relationship is no longer intact, fathers must believe their role is vital and that they have value themselves. Mothers must believe that fathers will step up to a shared parenting role, that their children benefit greatly from involvement with their fathers and encourage them to spend time with their children even when the adult relationship is over.

Children who have close relationships with their fathers have higher self-esteem, better academic performance, more positive social behaviors and fewer behavioral issues during adolescence. This even holds true with children involved in the child welfare system. Studies of these children show that those who have contact with even a non-custodial father within the past year were 46% less likely to enter foster care. Deaconess works with parents for the sake of vulnerable children for this very reason.

At Deaconess, we feel it’s important to recognize the vital role that mothers and fathers play not only in their children’s lives, but also in our community. On October 1, 2010, Deaconess Children's Services will celebrate 113 years of putting children first by hosting the 6th Annual Father and Mother of the Year Awards ceremony at Forest Park in Everett, WA. It's going to be a great night including beautiful desserts, a wine auction, a raffle with fabulous big ticket items, including a 50” Plasma TV donated by Panasonic Avionics Corporation, our trademark fashion show for the moms, inspirational speakers for the fathers, and much, much more!

So…mark your calendars for October 1st, pick your favorite bottle of wine to donate to our wine auction, program your GPS for Forest Park and join us for this free event!

Event Specifics:

Who: Deaconess Children’s Services
What: Father and Mother of the Year Awards
When: 6:00pm-8:00 pm on October 1st, 2010
Where: Floral Hall, Forest Park @ 802 E. Mukilteo Blvd. Everett, WA 98203

Please RSVP with Stacey Pfeiffer at 425-259-0146 or spfeiffer@deaconesschildren.org

We look forward to celebrating with you!