Through extensive research as well as transparent stories of his own fathering journey from wounded son to bewildered new dad to effective and fulfilled father, Keith brings to life the core fathering practices that have shaped him as a dad- practices you can emulate-and guides you from information toward transformation-to become the dad you want to be.
 
Keith's new book, The Heart of Fathering: Best Practices of Great Dads inspires hope and provides help for the millions of men who are now (or will soon become) fathers. It's a great read for moms too.

> Learn more about Keith Zafren and The Great Dads Project.
> Read what people are saying about Keith, the Project, and the Book.
> Contact The Great Dads Project

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Register for The Heart of Fathering: Best Practices of Great Dads Conference for Men: June 30, 2012

About Keith Zafren and The Great Dads Project

For 28 years Keith Zafren has been inspiring people from all walks of life to become their best selves. Through his work as founder of The River Church Community (www.the-river.org), a founding board member and Character Formation Coach for the Prison Entrepreneurship Program (www.pep.org), and now as founder of The Great Dads Project, Keith has touched thousands of lives.

Keith's personal mission is to relentlessly pursue his own authenticity, healing and growth, and to create peak experiences which elevate and inspire dads toward self-awareness, receptivity and transformation through his in-depth research, compelling writing, charismatic speaking and supportive mentoring.

Keith brings his enthusiasm for personal transformation to dads-and moms-across the country through speaking engagements, workshops, and his new book, The Heart of Fathering: Best Practices of Great Dads! Inspiring his own father journey are his three remarkable sons, the healing gifts of his life: JD, Cal, and Kai. Keith and his wife Debbie have been married for 19 years.

What people are saying about Keith, the Project, and the Book

Keith Zafren is an inspiring guide on this adventure into the heart of fathering. Read this book. It will make you a better dad, and it may even help you forgive your own father for the mistakes he inevitably made.

Neil Chethik
Executive Director, The Carnegie Center for Literacy and Learning
Author, FatherLoss: How Sons of All Ages Come to Terms with the Death of Their Dads and
VoiceMale: What Husbands Really Think About Their Marriages, Their Wives, Sex, Housework, and Commitment

I had already been mentored by Keith Zafren for several years when I founded the Prison Entrepreneurship Program (PEP) in Texas. Keith had been, and still is, the single most influential person in my life who shaped me into the leader and spiritual person I am today. He served as a founding member of our Governing Board and coached me through many of our challenging start-up issues.

Starting in our second class, I knew we needed a strong male/father role model for our men. It would have been easier to have someone local fill this role, but I was committed to providing our participants with world-class teachers and mentors, so we invested in flying Keith from Kentucky, eventually on a monthly basis, to teach on fatherhood and spirituality. He became a Character Formation Coach and deeply impacted our men's lives as they learned to become honorable men and great dads. Keith's influence and involvement with PEP was definitely one of the best aspects of the entire program. I witnessed our participants' transformation firsthand.

Keith remains a great friend and advisor to me. I'm honored he's serving on the National Advisory Board for Defy Ventures, my second nonprofit in the prison rehabilitation sector. I couldn't be more excited about what he's creating with The Great Dads Project. Keith is a tremendously gifted teacher. He may be the most devoted father I've ever met. The Great Dads Project is filling a tremendous unmet need. I believe the key to restoring the most broken communities in America is to equip men to be great fathers. Keith is perfectly equipped through his life and professional experiences to lead this movement.

Catherine Rohr
Former founder and CEO, The Prison Entrepreneurship Program
Current founder and CEO, Defy Ventures
www.defyventures.org

Unfortunately, I've made some foolish choices, served a six-year term in prison, but just this past week was granted the blessing of sweet freedom. Although I was heartbroken and utterly devastated over not being able to be the dad I needed to be and for causing pain in my children's precious lives, my prison sentence ended up being the best thing that ever happened to me. I was able to become a much better father from behind prison walls. I learned how I have been affected by not having a father and how to ensure that I do not afflict the same deep wound upon my children. Keith Zafren taught me so much about being a dad. He is a great mentor and I love him dearly for what he has shown me. Keith has been coaching me for nearly three years now. He is an excellent teacher, and an even better father, as he leads by example. I have moved forward light years in my fathering skills because of what I've learned from Keith. After just a few minutes of his teaching, you will know it is his special calling to help men become great dads. Allow Keith to mold you into a Great Dad. I know I am.

Bobby Colombo
Formerly Incarcerated Father
Member of Class VII of the Prison Entrepreneurship Program

I have had the good fortune of working as a business partner with Keith for the last two years. Seeing first hand how he raises his sons and how he handles his life and business are a daily reminder to me to be the best dad I can be, but also the best person I can be. He is such a genuine man. His passion for helping people is unsurpassed by anyone I know.

Jeff Boswell
CFO and Operations Manager, My Three Sons Professional Painting
www.mythreesonspainting.com

Being in the presence of Keith's writing is like being perched over an intimate cup of tea with a perceptive and wise friend. With intuitive mastery, Keith attends to his topic with authenticity and alacrity. Though I'm not a father, I do have one. I'm not a son, but I mother three of them. Finally, there is a book—a guide of sorts—illustrating what thoughtful fathering actually looks like with real-life, raw, human examples of his own and others. This work is as practical as it is deeply soulful.

Through his own compelling self-observation and personal disclosure, it is obvious that Keith has steeped in and skillfully examined his own human and humbling experience of both parenting and being parented. This enabled me to trust him, and allowed me to trust myself in taking his life-lessons to heart. In particular, Keith's masterful, gentle chapter on healing the father wound and grief allowed me to begin to navigate an aching part of my own life. What a nourishing read for me as I make sense of how I was fathered, what my boys are seeking in their dad, and how I can come alongside my husband in co-parenting our children with a new comprehension and compassion.

Susan Olesek
International Enneagram Facilitator and Coach
www.susanolesek.com