Calling all dads! Whether you’re looking to make some new dad friends, need some ways to socialize your kids, or just want to feel a little more connected, Phoenix Dads Group is for you!
Founded in August 2018, this fall will mark the Phoenix Dads Group’s 6th year as a chapter of City Dads Group. With over 390 members, Phoenix Dads Group has been creating a dynamic, diverse, and inclusive community of fathers dedicated to being active in their children’s lives, and redefining what it means to be a dad in the 21st century.
Members of the Phoenix Dads Group come in all stripes: Stay-at-home and working, single and married, homosexual and heterosexual, and from different races, nations and religions.
Ben Mills, current Co-Organizer of the Phoenix Dads Group, learned about the City Dads Group and the Phoenix chapter after attending the National At-Home Dad conference in 2022.
“I was looking to increase my support network of fellow dads. Fortunately for me that year the conference was held at the Residence Inn in downtown Phoenix,” said Mills. “I joined Phoenix Dads Group immediately after the conference.”
Shortly after applying to be a member of Phoenix Dads Group and inquiring more, Mills was contacted by the former Co-Organizer of the group who shared that he was looking to step down from his role.
“He informed me that my email spoke to the values of the group, and with my role as a new at-home dad that I may be able to properly support the group’s growth,” said Mills. “I was both excited and a bit nervous.”
Mills took over as Co-Organizer a little over a year ago, and has been working to continue the mission of the Phoenix Dads Group.
Currently, Phoenix Dads Group offers a minimum of three events a month: Two are playdates for dads and their kids, and the other is a dads-only social event. Events are held all across the Valley, with a current primary focus in the West Valley.
Recent events have included a family outing to a Diamondbacks game, a playdate at the Phoenix Children’s Museum, a trip to the Martin Auto Museum, as well as free or reduced-price advanced screenings to movies and live theater performances.
Dad social events have ranged from a night out at Topgolf, attending women’s roller derbies, attending the AZ Festival of Nations, weekend brunches at local coffee shops, and more.
Throughout the year, the Phoenix Dads Group has also been recognizing and celebrating mental, emotional, and social well-being by promoting various self-care awareness events like Movember, an annual event raising awareness of men’s health issues, such as prostate cancer, testicular cancer, and men’s suicide.
Additionally, every June, Phoenix Dads Group partners with Father’s Eve by hosting a family event, a community service project, and a dads’ social the day prior to Father’s Day.
“We are always open to exploring our members’ ideas as well as community events that support healthy parenting and fatherhood,” said Mills. “It has been a pretty rewarding experience, as well as an amazing way to meet other caring and thoughtful dads and their kids.”
To find out more, or to join the group, visit www.phoenixdadsgroup.com
