Page 3 - Florida Sentinel 10-21-22

Feature
‘Fathers University’ Teaches And Provides Much Needed Support For Fathers
BY MONIQUE STAMPS Sentinel Staff Writer
Emerson Morris was des- tined to be a leader of men. He was born and raised in Miami and like many children he grew up with, he loved football and was determined to play profes- sionally.
Morris excelled in the sport by practicing relentlessly and learning from his coaches. In 1997, he was rewarded for his hard work with an athletic scholarship to the University of South Florida.
Upon arriving at USF, he was faced with the challenge of getting a passing score on the SAT. Determined to pass the test and maintain his grades at the same time, Morris worked hard on academics, too.
However, in the third game of the 2001 football season, Morris suffered a severely bro- ken leg that caused him to miss the rest of the season.
The realization that his dreams of NFL stardom were fading, he rose to the challenge and while rehabbing his leg, he took a heavy load of classes to get his Criminology degree. Morris did not make it to the NFL, but that time sparked a search for his true purpose.
In 2003, Morris looked at becoming a teacher as his future vocation. For the last 18 years, he has been working in the Hillsborough County school sys- tem. His background, passion and leadership skills all kicked in and he realized the dire need for mentorship for fathers, whether they were in the home or not.
That passion and his sports discipline led him to created Y- MO (Young Men Obey) in the
Even when coming up short, un- derstanding stories of men that are hurt, struggle with literacy, and want to be better can be a catalyst. The purpose of these programs is to help men build healthy habits to become a stronger man in. His second
book is Defeating The Giants From Within.
Morris, also a certified per- sonal trainer of Extreme Fit- ness, LLC, offers personal fitness training to assist individ- uals in becoming healthy.
He was previously a Lead
Pastor for ten years at Extreme Life Ministries. He is devoted to his wife of 18 years, April, and their two children, Emoni and Elika.
For more information, visit the website at https://www.fa- thersuniversity.org.
EMERSON MORRIS
early 2000s, that focused on health and wellness to build leadership in men. When he be- came a father in 2008, his wife had been laid off due to the fis- cal crisis. He began working two jobs, teaching and working at FEDX at night. After, coming home late one night, he was overcome watching his wife nursing their young daughter and the special bond they had.
“I could see why some fa- thers were checking out. There were no resources and little sup- port for struggling fathers who wanted to make better decisions and learn how to be the best men and fathers,” Morris said.
After seeing his wife and baby, he was so moved that he decided to author a book for first-time fathers, titled Daddy’s Milk. The book teaches and en- courages men to navigate through life as a man and father.
Morris has fine-tuned his teachings and became the founder of Fathers Univer- sity, a coaching firm that edu- cates men in fatherhood, finance, and fitness. He offers both short-term and long-term classes, including Fathers Ba- sics, Fathers Finance, and Fa- thers 90 Day Fit. He wants fathers to share their stories.
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