START – A world where kids stay captivated by life, not screens.

In 2019, The Father’s Club was honored and privileged to meet the impactful women in our community who joined together to tackle the issues with technology. This amazing group of leaders created START (Stand Together and Rethink Technology). We want to share with you a little about their story, the journey they’re on, and some hard truths we all need to hear.

WHY START

Today’s parents have many resources to help them prepare to raise a child, but there’s one book that doesn’t yet exist: What to Expect when you’re (Tech)xpecting! The truth is, we are the first generation of parents pondering questions like. “How much screen time is too much? How should I feel about Fortnite? When do I get my child a phone? How should I prepare them for social media?”

We get it—a few years back, we began asking the same questions for our own children.

So, we did what young parents often do, and began seeking advice from parents in the season just ahead of us. But as we begged them to share wisdom, we noticed a hopelessness in their responses. Their voices would get soft, their faces would drop, and their eyes would dim as they shared: “I don’t know what advice to give, but need to do something different than I’ve done.” And they would often share very personal stories about the way screens were impacting their children’s lives.

THE TRUTH

Technology has the power to uplift and improve our humanity—but it’s critical that we create new cultural norms of digital health if we want our kids to flourish. START seeks to help families and communities across America pursue digital health in order to reduce loneliness, depression, anxiety, and suicide in a socially isolated society. Please join us in pursuing our mission–a world where kids stay captivated by life, not screens.

THE PRACTICAL

Recently, START shared a BLOG titled “5 Ways to Help Kids Manage Social Media Pressure.” We can all relate to that title. Please take a moment and read this amazing BLOG from our friends at START.