California Trail Middle School: Justin Jefferson and Dads Supporting Dads

By Robert Mitchell and Ricky Ogden

Robert’s Perspective

For years I would help at my daughters’ elementary school as a volunteer lunch aide. I’d take two hours off in the middle of the workday, go to the school and help the younger kids open milk cartons, get straws, and clean the tables for the next group. For the older kids, we had conversations, dad jokes and interactions focused on them.

Four years ago, I met a girl during lunch. Let’s call her Justin. Justin was engaging. She asked great questions and always looked me in the eyes when we spoke. She also loved wearing a Justin Jefferson Minnesota Vikings jersey. For the next three years, when I was a lunch aide, I would see Justin, and we would talk about martial arts, grades, football, and dad jokes. She went to the same school as my daughters. My daughters knew of her, but were not friends with her.

February 5, 2026

Fast forward to Thursday, February 5, 2026, the California Trail Middle School Chapter of Father’s Club was providing ice cream to all the students during lunch.  That morning in our Father’s Club group text I got a message that a father in our chapter was admitted to the hospital the previous night and undergoing treatment for a serious medical condition. My heart dropped. I knew this father did not get a chance to kiss and hug his daughters goodbye that morning. Also, this father would have been at the school with us serving ice cream to his daughter, my daughter, and hundreds of other students.

The sixth graders have lunch first. In walks Justin. I greet her at her table with a fist bump. Knowing her father was in the hospital, I tell her I know he misses you and wishes he could be here for you. I could see the fear and sadness in her face as tears started to well up. With the school administrators’ permission, the group of fathers took a picture with Justin. I texted the picture to her father. Twenty minutes later, as the 6^th graders were dismissed from lunch, Justin ran across the lunchroom and gave me a hug. Then she ran out, off to 4^th hour. That was the highlight of my week. We had a divine appointment. As a group of men, we stepped in for a short amount of time and changed the temperature in the room for her.

That’s why I love Justin Jefferson.

Ricky’s Perspective

It was a Tuesday morning in early February. I woke up, did my morning routine workout, kissed my wife and daughters goodbye, and headed to a routine dentist appointment. But this day was anything but routine. As the morning went on, I didn’t feel my best but didn’t stop to really evaluate how I was doing. Fast forward to the evening right before our bedtime routine with our daughters, my wife astutely listened to my heart with a stethoscope. “I don’t like what I’m hearing” she said in a kind but firm voice.

We put the girls to bed and headed to the emergency room where I was diagnosed as being in full-blown atrial fibrillation. I was stunned, terrified, and completely at a loss. Here I was, the proud father of two amazing daughters and a devoted husband to my incredible wife of almost 19 years. And yet, there I was lying helpless in a hospital bed with one of my most basic bodily functions in complete disarray.

I was supposed to have been at my youngest daughter’s school with Father’s Club to celebrate its 30^th anniversary and then give Fist Bumps for Kindness at my eldest daughter’s school, and yet I was unable to even have a normal heart rhythm. At that moment, all I wanted to do was hug my girlies one more time.

Thankfully, my fellow brothers in Father’s Club rallied around me with their messages of support and offering to help my family. They also rallied around my daughters and made them feel supported and special when I was unable to. My medical team was able to take phenomenal care of me and get my heart back in rhythm. It was then that I got to see my girlies, hug them tight, and let them know that I was going to be alright.

I continued to receive so many messages from my fellow Father’s Club friends, sharing with me their thoughts and prayers and offering continued support for my family. I had always viewed Father’s Club as a fantastic way for dads to get involved in their kids’ lives, but this extreme experience has also shown how incredible Father’s Club is at supporting dads as well.

Next Steps

• To get involved with a Father’s Club chapter at your school, visit the Chapters page on our website.
• If there isn’t a chapter currently at your school and you would like to know more about starting a Father’s Club chapter, visit the Contact page and fill out the form with your details and we will be in touch!