I am wide-eyed over our recent DaddyBlogger.com traffic report! These are very exciting times for DaddyBlogger and our organization A Child's Right. I reviewed our traffic report on this blog and all I can say is THANK YOU! Thank you for all of you who have been visiting DaddyBlogger and for telling so many others about this blog.
We are averaging over 400 unique new visitors daily!! We are simply stunned at how DaddyBlogger has exploded in popularity. Our Technorati rank has increased so rapidly we, at first, thought maybe there was some type of error in the reporting. To have our rank with the millions and millions of blogs that are out there is truly an honor. So - thank you again - this has touched Robert and I so much.
Another happy update! We continue to receive an overwhelming number of new volunteer sign-ups at our organization's, A Child's Right, website. We are very thankful for all of you that help on a daily basis. Thank you for helping us protect a child's right to EQUAL time with BOTH fit parents after a divorce.
The EQUAL Parenting Bike Trek has exploded beyond anything we could have possibly dreamed of. Volunteers helped mail out over 1,000 postcards notifying organizations, people and the media of this incredible event/story.
The buzz on Blogs throughout the Internet continues to expand and we have an update of the Blogs that are covering this story with some of the highest ranked blogs in the world covering this. We are even receiving calls from the U.K., Australia, Canada and more wanting to help in anyway possible. We are so thankful to all of those bloggers who have chosen to cover this event. We also have over 11 formal media interviews coming up in the near future. It is very exciting to see the traditional media becoming increasingly interested in this event. My husband (Robert Pedersen) and Rob MacKenzie both have traditional media interviews on TV and the Radio coming up shortly. We also have "insider" information that USA Today is going to do a newspaper article on this!!! This is quite overwhelming in a very good way.
As you know our two cyclists will be welcomed at the August 18th, 2007 Washington, D.C. Rally by over 100,000 people. The number of people confirmed as attending this event continues to climb. It is hard to believe this Rally was born out of several of our Michigan based organizations putting their minds together. We are certainly becoming a political force and the first example of this was when Robert organized thousands of people to help with the election of a current Congressman. This was noted in a newspaper article. The article starts on the bottom left hand corner of the link provided. The Washington, D.C. Rally will certainly shock the nation and we are very positive of this. Robert has repeatedly told me how amazing it will feel to complete the over 600 miles on a bicycle and to be greeted in Washington, D.C. with the now confirmed count of slightly over 100,000 people.
A few other positive notes and past links we thought you might like:
1) My husband, Robert Pedersen, was recently mentioned in a new book that was published as being very influential in the children's rights movement. Here is a link to the book titled "Cheated". Robert is mentioned on page 7 of this book.
2) We have advertisements running in some Michigan newspapers, Google, and on the radio. If you have not already heard our radio ad when you visited this blog, you can listen to it here.
3) Robert and I are very excited to have a baby on the way!! This has been such an amazing feeling and we are both so very happy. Robert and I were friends for years before we dated and we met where I once worked as a Registered Nurse. We got married, not because we had to, but because we desired to and we conceived a baby while being married and we are very thankful that God has given us this relationship, marriage and now a child. I have seen Robert under the worst stress anyone could imagine and I have been amazed at how he handles all of this stress since the day his children were deprived of their God given right to EQUAL time with BOTH fit parents.
Robert has been so gentle and caring to all of my concerns that I sometimes have to remind him how incredible it is that he has made it through what many would consider to be hell and has come out of this stronger than ever before. We are still trying to recover from when he lost his job last year and we do not have a penny to our name but we are so happy. He keeps telling me that he is amazed by how happy a couple can be; having very few personal possessions and very little money. I tell him that we are so rich with love and supporting family and that some financially rich people never get to experience such things.
If you have not checked out the video he made for me you can here.
4) Our respect and friendship for Minister Ronald Smith and his wife continues to grow. We feel like there is an amazing connection between us as couples. Meeting Minister Smith and his wife will only make it clear to you how loving and dedicated his family is to this movement and children.
Recently, Robert and Lary Holland made a trip to Iowa and spent the night with 2008 Presidential Candidate Dr. Mark Klein and his staff. Robert was able to capture some quick video footage of Minister Smith giving a presentation at a rally for an Iowa organization and Dr. Mark Klein. This is a must watch video if you have not seen it yet.
Since we are talking about incredible videos you should also check out this one as well!
Remember this SOLID research fact from a FEMALE when watching this video:
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.
Source: McLanahan, Sara L. "Life without Father: What happens to the children?"
5) Our Squidoo Lens on the benefits of shared parenting and Michigan House Bill 4564 is now ranked #9 nationally in the politics category!! Be sure to check it out and to sign our guest-book as well.
6) Be sure to visit the DaddyBlogger picture gallery. A Child's Right is one of the official sponsors of the movie "Support?". You can view the trailers for this amazing movie on the left side bar of this blog. To view the new trailer click here!
7) Listen to Robert Pedersen and Carol Rhodes, author of "Friend of the Court Enemy of the Family" and former Calhoun County Child Support Enforcement Officer, discuss the shocking truth behind the Michigan child support system.
"We were ranked by how much money we brought in..." - Carol Rhodes
Nationally syndicated radio talk show KRights Radio with Richar Farr. Listen to the entire interview and you will be shocked at what you hear!
Thank you everyone for your continued support. We are humbled by all of you who read DaddyBlogger.com and by the tremendous growth of our organization.Robert continues to ask, obviously trying to avoid another court battle, for equal time with his children who live only 8 minutes away and within the same school district.
President and Co-Founder
This effort can only grow through everyone's support. All children need to be able to love their parents and need them by their side.
Posted by: gmagpa | June 02, 2007 at 08:09 PM
Colorado parents. Lets connect. Work toward enabling equal access of children to both their mothers and fathers following divorce and separation. I live in Lone Tree, Colorado, a suburb of south Denver. 720-635-5000.
Posted by: Steven W. Newell, M.D., Men of Valor, Inc., Denver (Lone Tree), Colorado | June 04, 2007 at 03:38 PM
My name is David Easter, I'm a father of 4, ages 26, 22, 18, 14 in Virginia. I just listened to the talk radio with Robert Pederson and Carol Rhodes and I must say it gives me MUCH comfort (although I am crying with mixed emotion) to know that I have been right about Division of Child Support Enforcement policies to first force you to be a non-custodial parent, then label you as a DEADBEAT DAD, strip you of your pride and dignity, RAPE you financially, then take your drivers license so you can't find work or (as was my case) if you drive for a living, you just lost your means of income. Then threaten you with jail if you don't comply. DCSE tells you that you MUST notify them of any and all changes in your job status and addresses, they use this information to bully and harrass you in the same manner a loan shark would. I even had one call, after I lost a job and reported to DCSE, telling me to borrow money from my ex to pay some on my support.
I have had to live with family members since 2000 because I cannot afford a place of my own, and now I live with my oldest son, who broke his neck in 2002 and is a quadriplegic, as his primary care giver in a one bedroom apartment. I cannot work because home health care is so unreliable, so we live on his Social Security of less than $900 a month.
My story begins in '89 with child support for my daughter, then 1 year old. I have custody of my two oldest boys by previous relationships, recieving no child support for either of them. Visitation was never denied and at times I had to force the visit because a child has a right and a need for their mother AND father. I was in a relationship with my soon-to-be 2nd wife. I had a good job, we had a nice house (rented) and between us we had 4 boys and 2 girls. I was paying my daughter's mother child support directly (court ordered, but not DCSE). I got married in Nov. 1990, my wife and my daughters mother were friends, so there was never any conflict with my daughter spending most of her time with us at our house, it was hers too. I still had to pay support though!
Time went by and my ex decided to move 300 mile away and take my daughter, so I decided to fight for custody as she had no job, nowhere to live and my daughter stayed with us most of the time anyway. I was sure we would get custody because of the circumstances. No, DCSE stepped in and said that not only is the mother getting custody, but because she doesn't have a job and I had no reciepts for the previous year of child support, I had to pay more in weekly support plus I was in arrears for the previous year and she was allowed to take her to another part of the state. She did bring her down often and I kept her for the summers every year, still had to pay child support though. In '92, my youngest son was born, making 7 children in our house, we had a live in baby sitter and things were good.
Summer of '93, my daughter, now 6, is down for the summer, my wife and I were out with friends around 6pm, the four older boys were in the front yard, my daughter was on the couch just inside the front door. My 10 year old stepdaughter was in another room with my youngest son, the babysitter was fixing dinner. My bosses son pulls up on a riding lawn mower, uninvited, but the kids know him so they pay no attention to him. He enters the house and a few minutes later my stepdaughter comes into the living room and catches him fondling my 6 year old. She yells at him, the sitter runs into the room and he runs out the door and disappears. A week later, we found out that the boys Scout Troop Leader had been molesting my oldest son, this chain of events started a deteriation of my family life, my reations with my daughters mother and my job security. In '96 my wife and I seperated, and agreed to have joint custody with no support, DCSE said no and of course, she got physical custody with support.
I lost my job because of the tension of what happened with my bosses son and my daughter and pressure from my daughter's mother to quit supporting "that family" by working for them. I had that job for 11 years. I found another job making far less money and started falling behind on support, then in November '97 I found a good paying job as a delivery driver again and started regular support again, so I thought. I held that job till March '99, at which time I had a ruptured disc in my neck and had to have a spinal fusion, causing me to be out of work for almost a year and the loss of that job. While I was waiting for my short term disability insurance to decide to pay up, DCSE suspended my license so when I was able to return to work I could no longer drive a truck. That leaves lower paying jobs that you can't live on with out taking support out, let alone DCSE taking 65% plus being told I have to pay 9 1/2% interest on the arrears.
I have given up trying to catch up at the present, I am about 15,000 behind between the two cases. My daughter graduates tonight, she turned 18 last Aug., I will be there. My youngest son is here with me every week-end and when there is no school. He enjoys helping me take care of his older brother and is happy with sitting around playing games and getting on the computer. I am a good parent, I might not be able to pay the support, but my kids love both me and thier mothers and we all love them and none are wanting for anything money can buy.
I just hope and pray that this rein of terror the DCSE has had for years will end soon and allow people like myself to become whole again.
Posted by: David L. Easter | June 08, 2007 at 02:20 AM
My ex wife really "bent me over". When we got divorced I was a power lineman apprentice with a promising career. Unfortunately, a 40 ft. fall off of a pole ended that career. In the divorce I had to take all the marital debt, pay for the health insurance, daycare, and pay child support. At the time I didn't have a problem with this. About 3 years later I met a woman and moved with her to a different state. I came back to Colorado every 2 weeks in order to visit my children. Things didn't work out, so I moved back to Colorado.
Here is where the story gets good.
When I moved back, my ex wife went to child support and LIED to them saying that I had never payed any child support. I started producing all kinds of receipts, but the child support people told me that I would have to settle things with my ex or take her to court. After showing her some of the receipts she agreed that I "owed her" half of the child support.
What really gets me is that I had absolutely no say in the matter. She has even went against the divorce decree and does just what she thinks is in her best interest, saying it's for the childrens. I consulted a lawyer and the lawyer told me that there wasn't anything I can do about it due to the situation and Colorado law. Now I am out of a job collecting unemployment and I have child support threatening me with warrants, jail time, revocation of my licence, etc.
If your a man in Colorado you have absolutely no rights when it comes to child support issues.......
Posted by: Eddie Clubs | October 18, 2007 at 11:01 PM