It's Father's Day Week In Upton/Druid Heights!

“If men in this community are experiencing something rough, I call or check in. You know, folks are stressed: they’re facing this pandemic, the economy, the violence that goes on in Upton and Druid Heights. That’s all affecting folks.

We’ve provided a safe space to think and talk about the pressures of all of those things, compounded with whatever else is happening in life in general.”

Meldon Dickens, B’more for Healthy Babies Resource Dad/Community Outreach

The week of June 20 is an ideal time to celebrate all nurturing men, and Promise Heights also honors them year round.

As things were gearing up for Father’s Day weekend this year, we reached out to Mr. Meldon Dickens, the Resource Dad and Community Outreach professional with B’more for Healthy Babies. Here’s what he wanted you to know:

 “Every year we plan a ‘Barber/Baby’ day—when we partner with about six local barber shops—four in the Upton/Druid Heights community and two in the Mondawmin community featuring a theme for that particular year: like Safe Sleep [for babies,] or smoking cessation, infant mortality, and themes like that for men who come into the barber shops.

 

This year we’re going to give away food to 25 of these men—fathers in the community. We’ll probably give about five meals to each barbershop to share–a complete meal for a man to feed a family of at least four. We’ll probably also give some gift bags as well with small things like a toiletry case, maybe a notepad and pens to share with barber shop patrons.

 

Each year when we show up at these facilities, we usually ask the patrons to give us a few minutes to talk with them about whatever issues we’re featuring. Mental health is a big thing we've been pushing this year because there's been such a heaviness in the world—in the nation—and we want to make sure we’ve checked in with folks.

 

Men tend not to express [emotions,] so we want to have conversations and share some resources with them.

 

Some of these men had participated in a Mental Health/First Responders training that Promise Heights offered to some of the barbers. We did register people for that. So that will take place the weekend or Father's Day, and we'll probably start visiting the shops over Thursday, Friday and Saturday of that weekend.

 

I'm also working with the The Family League [of Baltimore] in conjunction with B’more for Healthy Babies (BHB) to do a citywide event. One of the radio personalities at Radio One [and also 95.5FM] will host it on the 21st of June. So, we’re connecting that with Father’s Day and Juneteenth—it’s going to involve dads and men, and we have some men of the community who will be involved.

 

One is a pastor. Another gentleman is a policeman. And we’re hoping a radio host or personality for 92/Radio One will host it—maybe ‘Porkchop.’ It’ll be live from 4-5pm and it'll be a great conversation for men to have around issues of mental health.

 

Finally, [several days] before Father’s Day weekend, there's going to be a press conference celebrating all the improvements that have happened [due to B’more for Healthy Babies incentives.] They have been such a game changer—and that's also going to be tied into Father's Day celebrations.”

[We’ll share more soon!]