On Father’s Day a lot of articles and blog posts focus on what gifts to give dad but often the more important message of spending quality time with family is overlooked. Father’s Day is a great reminder that we all should take a moment out of our busy day to call or hang out with our parents or children. In our stressful and consumer-based lifestyle, a little time spent with loved ones goes a long way.

This weekend, in an effort to get out the message that dads play a critical role in their children’s lives, the Ad Council, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Administration for Children and Families, Office of Family Assistance and the National Responsible Fatherhood Clearinghouse have all joined forces to release PSA’s online.

Created pro bono by Campbell-Ewald, the new PSAs emphasize to fathers that “the smallest moments can have the biggest impact on a child’s life.” The PSAs conclude with the tagline, “Take time to be a dad today” and direct fathers to visit www.fatherhood.gov or call 1-877-4DAD411 for parenting tips and additional resources for fathers.

DID YOU KNOW:
• An estimated 24 million children (34%) live absent their biological father.
• Nearly 20 million children (27 percent) live in single-parent homes.
• Children who live absent their biological fathers are, on average, at least two to three times more likely to be poor, to use drugs, to experience educational, health, emotional and behavioral problems, to be victims of child abuse, and to engage in criminal behavior than their peers who live with their married, biological (or adoptive) parents.
• Children with involved, loving fathers are significantly more likely to do well in school, have healthy self-esteem, exhibit empathy and pro-social behavior, and avoid high-risk behaviors such as drug use, truancy, and criminal activity compared to children who have uninvolved fathers.