Fathers of Color

Who is that by?

admin — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 04:24:18 +0000

Over in San Francisco, there is building with art galleries on every floor. (The building’s address is 49 Geary Street, if you want to check it out.) There are probably many buildings like this. This particular one has many galleries that are dedicated to photography, so this makes it one of my favorite spots.

The other day, I went to check it out. Scott Nichols Gallery is really nice and they had prints on many of the walls. Some of it I was feeling and some not. Anyway, they had one landscape print that was matted and framed, but resting on the floor. It was a black and white landscape print, and I looked at it like “wow, those clouds look fantastic.” The quality of the print was incredible.

I tried to read whose signature it was, but I couldn’t tell. I asked the lady and she told me that it was Ansel Adams!

“Oh, no wonder the print was amazing.” I asked how much it was, and she said $30,000. I thought ok, I guess that I will be leaving now.

Stepping Up to the Challenge: A Black Father’s Story

admin — Sun, 04 Sep 2011 18:04:55 +0000

I met the mother of my child in my freshman year of high school. We fooled around like high schoolers do, and emerged over the four years to become very popular by senior year—without trying, of course. I was a musical performer who made decent grades, and she was a schoolgirl who made above-average grades. By senior year, we thought it was time we made our relationship official.

Rally set for Million Father March

admin — Sat, 03 Sep 2011 18:03:03 +0000

I hadn’t heard about this one before, but it sounds interesting…

Organizers of the Charlotte area’s participation in the annual national Million Father March will hold a rally Thursday evening in hopes of helping accomplish the goal of the march — getting more fathers involved in their children’s education.

Reminder why I started down this path

admin — Fri, 13 May 2011 05:14:03 +0000

I had a really encouraging meeting at Oakland housing authority. They are doing very innovative things, including job training and placement.

I was involved because they are creating a networking group for fathers and are having an event the week before fathers day. My guess is that it will mainly be young fathers. It is going to be very nice and interactive event. The purpose is to let the fathers know that they are not alone, and that there are many people going through similar experiences.

Our planning meeting reminded me why I started photographing fathers in the first place. I had really hoped that I would be able to be part of community events like this.

I am going to photograph the event, also display some of my photos, as well as talk about how I started the Fathers of Color project.

A quinceanera dream comes true

admin — Tue, 05 Apr 2011 06:25:18 +0000

Diana Lopez’s dream came true Sunday under a stormy sky and inside a tent big enough to hold 200 tearful guests at her quinceanera party.

“I’m so happy,” she told them from her wheelchair. “Thank you all for coming. Thank everyone who made this possible.”

That would be a lot of people. Several months ago, when Diana mentioned her wish, the staff at Sub-Acute Saratoga Children’s Hospital, where she lives, agreed to take it on even though it didn’t have the money and didn’t know much about the traditional rite of passage for Latinas turning 15. But after word of Diana’s dream got around, donations and volunteers poured in.

Ten Things Every Black Father Needs to Do…

admin — Tue, 05 Apr 2011 06:12:23 +0000

1) Tell your kids you love them every single day

Love not only makes the world go round, but every person needs to feel loved in order to have the balance necessary to be truly successful. If you love your kids, don’t just show it with your actions, say it with words. It will keep them from seeking love in all the wrong places.

In Texas, Quinceañeras Remain a Recession-Proof Industry

admin — Tue, 05 Apr 2011 06:06:34 +0000

Cecilia Gabriel of Dallas, Texas, is frantically looking for a place to hold her daughter Jacqueline’s quinceañera. It isn’t easy. “It’s coming up in September. We waited too long,” says Gabriel. For many, the15th birthday rite of passage in Latino culture is an event that must be planned at least a year in advance, if not longer.

Tenderness advice for fathers

admin — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 05:21:59 +0000

Okay, so you’re not the biggest fan of hugs and kisses, but you know your kids need affection. Don’t worry – we’ve got you covered with great tips and ideas for showing affection to your kids.

Be unique. Physical affection doesn’t just have to be a hug or kiss. Yes, those are both important, but you can also get creative and find new ways to show your affection. Create a special, secret handshake with your daughter, something only the two of you know. Or, have a “wrestling match” with your sons on the living room floor!

Fathers holding it down

admin — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 06:03:18 +0000

There was an opening of amazing art Oakland artist. She does traditional African sculpture and mixed media that she interprets into a modern context. The beautiful part was that she was running late, and her husband (an established artist himself) tried to hold it down – while watching the grandchild.

I was about to leave and he was outside with the baby. He was hoping that his wife was starting to talk about her art work. Even though he literally had his hands full, he was trying to make sure that the team was doing right and coming up. Lovely…

Quinceanara expo

admin — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 05:52:17 +0000

I saw this interesting article about a big Quinceanara expo that they had in Southern California. It would have been nice to go and check it out.

While fashion week wrapped up in various parts of the world, the 2011Quinceanera.com Expo and Fashion Showpresented by El Clasificado was in full swing. The announcement that for the first time the event was taking place in the San Fernando Valley area spread like wildfire drawing hundreds of quinceañera fashionistas and their families to the recently renovated Sportsmen’s Lodge Events Center in Studio City. Vendors demonstrating their custom quinceañera cakes, tiaras, hair jewelry, floral designs and make-up artistry excitedly interacted with the more than one thousand attendees at the free Quinceanera.com event.

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