Fueling Fathers: Wellness, Strength & Legacy Hosted by the FCCWPA

The Fathers Collaborative Council of Western PA proudly presents the 3rd Annual Fatherhood Engagement Conference, a dynamic two-day experience centered on the many dimensions of wellness impacting fathers, families, and communities.

This year’s conference will explore how fathers navigate wellness, family systems, finances, identity, leadership, and legacy while creating spaces for meaningful connection, collaboration, and growth.

Whether you are a father, service provider, educator, community advocate, policymaker, mentor, or supporter of fatherhood initiatives, this conference is designed to inspire practical solutions, honest conversations, and lasting impact.

📅 June 16, 2026
🕟 4:30 PM – 7:00 PM

📍Hosanna House 807 Wallace Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15221

Kick off the conference with a networking event connecting fathers with peers and community partners as we enjoy good food, music, and a relaxed, fun atmosphere designed for meaningful connections.

Featured Conversation:

“Dad Jokes and Development: Why Fathers Matter More Than We Think” facilitated by our Keynote Speaker Nick Kasovac.

📅 June 17, 2026
🕗 8:00 AM – 4:00 PM

📍Hosanna House 807 Wallace Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15221

This year’s conference brings together fathers, professionals, community partners, and advocates who are committed to strengthening father engagement and supporting families across our region. Expect a dynamic mix of connection, learning, and inspiration.

The full-day conference will feature keynote presentations, breakout sessions, fireside chats, and actionable strategies focused on strengthening fathers and improving outcomes for families.

Keynote Topic: Foundational, Not Optional: Fathers & Family Mental Health

This keynote session will examine the critical connection between fatherhood, emotional wellness, family health, and community healing while challenging stigma and encouraging healthy support systems for fathers and families.

· Feeling It First: What Fathers Experience in Our Systems

Discussing fathers’ real experiences within child-serving systems, healthcare, education, courts, and community support networks.

· Confidence Is the Curriculum: Translating Insight into Practice and Systems

Exploring father involvement in caregiving, breastfeeding support, and family mental health as interconnected and mutually reinforcing processes.

· Financial Literacy

Helping fathers build financial stability, and generational wealth.

· Branding, Perception & Legacy Building

Addressing how fathers are viewed, how they view themselves, and how they intentionally shape their legacy for future generations.

• Fathers & father figures
• Human service professionals
• Community organizations
• Educators & school personnel
• Mental health professionals
• Child welfare professionals
• Healthcare providers
• Faith leaders
• Advocates & policymakers
• Anyone passionate about strengthening fathers and families

Together, we can create healthier fathers, stronger families, and thriving communities.

We hope you will join us for an impactful experience focused on wellness, empowerment, and legacy.

Info: Kick off the conference with a networking event connecting fathers with peers and community partners as we enjoy good food, music, and a relaxed, fun atmosphere designed for meaningful connections.

Info: This brief, informal session introduces the developmental importance of fathers through short, curated video clips drawn from real-world parenting moments. Using humor, tenderness, and lived experience, the session humanizes fathers and establishes a shared context for understanding father engagement as a relational and developmental asset rather than a peripheral role.

Info: Hear from influential county leaders, advocates, and community changemakers as they welcome attendees and set the tone for a powerful day of conversation, collaboration, and action. This opening segment will highlight the importance of fatherhood, wellness, and community leadership while recognizing the vital role fathers play in strengthening families and shaping future generations. Speakers will offer insight, inspiration, and a shared commitment to creating systems and communities that uplift, support, and empower fathers.

Info: This keynote reframes fathers as a critical foundation of support for mothers, babies, and the family system — while emphasizing that effective support requires fathers to feel confident, competent, and emotionally resourced themselves. Drawing on developmental science, clinical practice, and national data from the State of American Men 2025 report, the presentation explores father involvement in caregiving, breastfeeding support, and family mental health as interconnected and mutually reinforcing processes.

Info: This interactive breakout session will equip fathers with practical tools and strategies to strengthen their financial future and build lasting stability for their families. Topics will include budgeting, saving, credit awareness, compounding interest, investing basics, financial planning, and creating generational wealth. Participants will gain insight into how everyday financial decisions can shape long-term opportunities, legacy, and economic empowerment for future generations.

Info: This interactive breakout uses paired and small-group experiential activities to help participants explore how professional language, posture, and expectations shape fathers’ sense of confidence and belonging. Through guided role-play and reflective debrief, participants examine common engagement pitfalls and identify practices that foster trust, competence, and relational safety.

Info: This engaging breakout session will explore personal branding, public perception, identity, leadership, and intentional legacy building. Participants will reflect on the narratives surrounding fatherhood while gaining practical strategies for shaping how they are seen, strengthening their influence, and creating a lasting impact that extends beyond today and into generations to come.

Info: Building directly on the keynote and experiential breakout, this session focuses on translating insight into actionable system-level changes. Participants examine common programmatic touchpoints (intake, visits, groups, education) and identify how environments can either support or undermine father confidence. The session emphasizes practical, immediately implementable shifts that strengthen engagement and family mental health outcomes.

Info: Join fathers from different stages of the parenting journey for an honest and engaging fireside conversation about the realities of fatherhood. Through personal stories and meaningful dialogue, participants will explore topics such as the emotions surrounding becoming a father, expectations versus reality, postpartum depression and mental health, lessons learned along the way, balancing self-care with parenting, and how fathers continue to pour into themselves while showing up for their families. This session will create space for reflection, vulnerability, encouragement, and authentic connection across generations of fathers.

Info: As the conference comes to a close, this powerful plenary session will bring attendees back together to reflect on the day’s conversations, lessons, and shared experiences. Leaders, presenters, and participants will highlight key takeaways, celebrate the strength and impact of fathers, and issue a collective call to continue building healthier families, stronger communities, and lasting legacies. Attendees will leave encouraged, empowered, and inspired to put insight into action long after the conference ends.

Know what’s Happening Next — before everyone else does.

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Host or Publisher Fathers Collaborative Council of Western PA