History
Illinois Fatherhood Initiative (IFI) was created in February 1997 to address the increasing problem of father absence in society. Research indicates that some 24,000,000 children - 1.1 million in Illinois alone - are growing up today in homes without their fathers. Children from fatherless homes are more likely to:
IFI is the country’s first state-wide non-profit fatherhood organization whose mission is connecting children and fathers by actively engaging fathers in the education of children. |
IFI was founded with the belief that every child deserves to grow up in a home with a loving, caring and involved father or father-figure.
Through strategic alliances with private, non-profit, and governmental organizations IFI will create and strengthen existing child/father programs by harnessing and unleashing the energy of a diverse group of volunteers (women and men, young and old, and those with and without means) to position Illinois as one of the country’s leading advocates of responsible fathering.