“When I first started working with Family Services at Fortune, I still wasn’t sure I wanted to see my son. I wasn’t working, and I thought, “What if I can’t buy him something he wants?” But my counselors taught me that it takes more than money to raise kids – it takes love. They were right. My son doesn’t mind that I can’t get him extravagant things. He just wants to hang out with me. Fortune also helped me successfully pursue the right to visitation, and now I get to spend quality time with my son at least once a week.

I haven’t drunk or smoked in five years. I understand that one moment of pleasure can cause a lifetime of pain, and my family – both my children – deserve better than that. Thanks to Fortune’s Family Services, I finally feel like I’m ready to be the responsible, loving father and husband they need.” -Michael K., Fortune client

Family Services helps formerly incarcerated parents establish or re-establish relationships with their children, end their dependence on governmental benefits, and successfully reintegrate into their communities.

We offer an array of group and individual services to meet the unique needs of mothers, fathers, and expectant parents who have criminal justice histories – many of whom are young adults who experience in the system has disrupted their relationships with their children and families.  Fortune’s Family Services clients learn to build healthy relationships with loved ones through participation in our intensive programs, services, and workshops, including: Healthy Relationships, Anger Management, 24/7 Dads, Practical Cooking and Nutrition, Parenting Skills, Threshold Steps, individual and couples counseling, domestic violence workshops, mediation and conflict resolution training, parenting skills training, and more.  Through participation in these life-stabilizing services, Family Services clients are given the tools to escape a life defined by crime and/or substance abuse, develop essential interpersonal and parenting skills, and become positive role models for their children.

SERVICES OFFERED BY FORTUNE’S FAMILY SERVICES PROGRAM INCLUDE:

Our group sessions help clients strengthen their parenting skills, build healthy relationships, learn anger management, recognize and diffuse potentially hostile or violent situations, and improve their decision-making and general life skills.  These sessions enhance their capacity as parents by placing emphasis on the importance of respect, helping, listening, and empathy, while simultaneously building a support network to help them manage any personal or financial difficulties that might affect their parenting.  Family Services clients are also assigned carefully-screened mentors, many of whom share similar histories of incarceration and substance abuse, who coach them on where they need to improve, and who facilitate recreational and social activities for parents and their children.

The program for non-custodial fathers, ages 16 and over, has an additional service in the form of our Family Law Attorney. Through these legal services fathers have the opportunity to establish adequate and fair child support for their children while also obtaining visitation and custody when appropriate.

PROGRAM HIGHLIGHT: Fortune’s Practical Cooking & Nutrition Class for Fathers
An eight-week cooking class for formerly incarcerated single fathers that helps them learn about basic diet and nutrition – often for the very first time.  The class has become more of a family gathering, as the “chefs-in-training” work together, explore new recipes and prepare the menu as a team. When the cooking is done, the class lays out an attractive buffet and sits down to eat together.  They are frequently joined by David Rothenberg, Fortune’s founder, and other staff or clients who drop by for a bite of the delicious food.  The camaraderie of preparing and eating meals together is a big part of the process of building families, and clients are often surprised to find that these classes are about much more than simple cooking and nutrition lessons – they’re about discovering the many joys of family – and of food!