The First Lady Laura Bush Visits Rosalie Manor:

Applauding Rosalie Manor's success and contribution to communities

Throughout our lives, meaningful events occur that we will always remember. For us, the visit from First Lady Laura Bush and Secretary of Health and Human Services Michael Leavitt was one of those events.

On March 8, we were honored to host Mrs. Bush and Secretary Leavitt to Milwaukee in which they promoted a new initiative, Helping America's Youth. This initiative will benefit young people by emphasizing action in the areas of family, school, and community. While there are many after school prevention programs, such as Families United to Prevent Teen Pregnancy (FUPTP), that are aimed at reducing negative influences in the lives of children, there are still many youth who are at-risk or are being missed. High risk behaviors such as using drugs and alcohol, violence and early sexual activity remain among the top causes for disease, early death, teen pregnancy and school drop-outs. The population at highest risk is young males, and is a strong focus of the initiative.

Mrs. Bush chose Rosalie Manor as the site of her press conference because she heard about our Today's Dads program and its results in serving young fathers. She wanted to hear directly from participants as to what is helping them in their lives. In addition, she was interested in learning more about FUPTP and how youth are changing their lives through the program.

First on their agenda was a 30-minute forum with four Today's Dads participants and our Father's Outreach Specialists. It was clear from the beginning that this visit wasn't simply a “feel good” PR campaign. Both Mrs. Bush and Secretary Leavitt were genuinely interested in what the young men had to say. Alphonso Pettis, our Father's Outreach Specialist stated, “The fathers were excited to speak with her, but didn't expect her or the Secretary to pay attention to them or to be taken seriously…but when Mr. Leavitt started taking notes and Mrs. Bush started asking questions, they knew what they said was making a difference, and were more willing to share their stories.” Their interest put the participants at ease and they became extremely candid as to what they need to become productive fathers and community members. One of our participants stated, “If it hadn't been for someone like Alphonso here at Rosalie Manor, most of us would have been lost, maybe dead, not part of our kids lives. Moms have a lot of responsibility, and they get a lot of help. But fathers like us also need our own kind of help and people who believe in us.”

The second group Mrs. Bush and Secretary Leavitt spoke with was FUPTP youth who attend St. Leo's Catholic Urban Academy. They shared with our guests their knowledge of the FUPTP curriculum through a Life Skills Jeopardy game, and even had the First Lady answering questions!

After meeting with the youth, Mrs. Bush and Secretary Leavitt moved to our Community Room to begin the press conference. Damon Rimmer, a Today's Dads participant, was privileged to introduce Mrs. Bush. Damon joined the program when he became a father at the age of 17. Without a job and not in school, Damon found a mentor in Alphonso Pettis. Having grown up without a father himself, Damon was determined to turn his situation around and be an active, responsible parent for his 4-year-old son, Kareem. “I don't know where I would have been without the program. I'm pretty sure I wouldn't be standing here talking about my success,” stated Damon.

Mrs. Bush thanked Damon for sharing his story, commended him on being a great spokesperson for Rosalie Manor, and applauded our work and dedication of staff in making our programs successful and inspirational examples that can be replicated across the country. “It's very important that the people of America hear the stories about the struggles that young men in America face, and also to hear about the courage they are showing to overcome their problems,” she said. Mrs. Bush expressed her concern about how boys are often neglected in the United States. “We let little boys grow up without the nurturing that we give girls… and then, when they're young men, they don't have that foundation from having the nurturing that they need from other men, from their fathers or their grandfathers or their uncles or from someone like Alphonso who can step in and help them in such a profound way.”

Having recognized fathers as an important component in the life of a child, and realizing that fathers weren't involved in the families we served, Rosalie Manor staff developed Today's Dads in 2001. We greatly appreciate the spotlight Mrs. Bush's visit and the Helping America's Youth initiative will have on our organization and on the Today's Dads program. Fathers are the underserved parent, and funding for this program is difficult. “We've found we need to educate the public on the importance of fathers, and the positive effect they do have in their child's life. And even then, it's difficult for some to understand how a father can positively impact their child's life even when they don't live with the child,” stated Alison Sergio, Director of Family Services.

It is clear Mrs. Bush understands the need for programming such as those offered by Rosalie Manor. “Research shows that the more children hear positive messages from adults, the less likely they are to engage in risky behaviors. Parents and family are the first and most important influence in a child's life, but we all know that there's no instruction book that comes with a baby. Plenty of parents need help, and organizations like Rosalie Manor are providing it. Rosalie helps first-time parents of any age, with a particular focus on teen parents, because teenagers face major challenges staying involved with their children's lives. They often struggle with school and finding a job to support their child. And many teen parents find it difficult to maintain a relationship with each other,” stated Mrs. Bush.

Programs like Today's Dads does work and can lead to success stories like that of Damon. The Responsible Fatherhood Initiative, an objective of Helping America's Youth, would support community and faith-based organizations that provide education training and other services to help men become committed and responsible fathers, both emotionally and financially, stated Mrs. Bush.

For more information about the Helping America's Youth initiative, you can visit http://www.whitehouse.gov/firstlady/helping-youth.html.

For more information about Today's Dads program, please contact Alison Sergio at (414) 449-2868 extension 213.