One man's mission to reunite fathers and kids

As an adult, Pierce learned where those imperfections came from. "My father told me his dad left when he was 3," he says. "A light bulb went off in my head: There are some fathers who don't know how to be dads."

After Pierce made that phone call to Dillon's dad, he dug deeper into the father-absence issue, reading books and combing the Internet for data. He thought about his own players – how those who grew up with a dad tended to do better academically and managed their emotions better.

"I met pastors and judges whose fathers had abandoned them," he says. "There were people in their 50s and 60s who were still hurting. I thought, 'Why is our society afraid to call up a dad and say, "What are you doing? Your child is hurting. Why aren't you there?" ' "

Once his program launched, Pierce spoke on radio shows and at churches. As his message spread, he got calls from single moms asking for help bringing fathers back into their children's lives and from sons and daughters who needed healing.

"These are not men who are going to show up at a seminar," he says. "They must be reached one at a time."

When Pierce connects with out-of-touch fathers, he tries to use a nonjudgmental voice. After listening to the reasons they dropped out of their children's lives, he offers solutions. Most men thank him for helping, he says.

His mission has drawn support from both everyday people and prominent figures.

"I've seen fathers basically disappear from the American family," says Bill Curry, an analyst for ESPN. He admits that he fell into that trap, too.

"My wife did a great job of raising our kids," Mr. Curry says. "I was out coaching football, working 80 hours a week, thinking I was a hero. But you're not a hero if you're not there for your kids. Fathers in Touch was the first program I saw that addressed that issue head-on."

Pierce is moved by how freely people pitch in to help his mission. He has no full-time staff, but there are about 40 volunteers. Dedicated fathers mentor ones who are struggling. People donate money and resources so he can host bonding activities like bowling nights for dads and children. He's held about a dozen events so far and has spoken about Fathers in Touch at least 20 times at places like churches and clubs.

The organization is based in Alabama, but its work has spread to Georgia and New Jersey, and it's started planting seeds in West Virginia. Pierce uses the operating budget of about $10,000 a year to pay for printing brochures and other materials. Since the program is growing, he hopes the budget will soon include hiring full-time staff.

One dad's testimony about change

A new Fathers in Touch ally is Wiley Lucas, dad of wide receiver Chad Lucas of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The elder Mr. Lucas, who will be one of the organization's spokesmen, has the kind of testimony fathers need to hear, Pierce says.

Lucas, who left his family when his son was about 9, says his battle with addiction led to his incarceration. In the nine months he spent in jail, Lucas saw firsthand what would happen if he stayed out of his son's life.

"These guys were 16, 17 years old, and they wanted to jump on me," he says. "They called me old man. They were very disrespectful to male authority. It stuck out to me that there was no man in the home."

Lucas wrote his son letters telling him how much he loved him. He sent half of his prison income home. "I made a vow to get back into Chad's life," he says.

He returned when Chad was a teen, and he became a coach to his son's football team. He also taught technology education at Chad's school. His son embraced him, he says.

"I can't take back what I did," says Lucas, who speaks to his son daily. "But I can be the best dad I can."

It's the possibility of turnarounds like this that make Pierce determined to help. "When I hear a child say, 'Coach, he called me last week' – when I hear that hope in their voice, that's the greatest gift," he says. "If Dad was strong enough to make that first contact, he's strong enough to stick around."

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