FORT WORTH, Texas — You wouldn’t be here if you didn’t have a father who had a hand in creating you. Unfortunately, all fathers are not present in their children’s lives. 

Studies show race and ethnicity can play a part in whether you know your dad or not. At Dunbar High School in Fort Worth, fathers from all backgrounds are stepping in for the kids who need it. 

High school is a place where you can be made fun of for what you don’t have. Depending on where you live, it’s also a place where you can be made fun of for what you do have, at least according to Nick Smith, a graduate of Dunbar High.  

"So many times growing up in high school, everybody had their mom or a mom reference. It was to the point where people would tease somebody for having both parents in the same household," said Smith. 

Smith is someone who grew up in a two-parent home and as an adult now knows that that kind of joke stems from pain. Once a month, Smith chooses to spend his mornings at Dunbar with young men. Over breakfast, they joke and talk about college, careers, relationships and what it means to be a man. 

“It doesn’t matter what community you come from, these kids are out future,” said Smith. 

The Annie E. Casey Foundation has data that shows Black and African American homes lead the way for being fatherless compared to other races. Sometimes the pain of not having a father comes in the form of silence. Merci Yohana is a senior at Dunbar and is being raised at home with just his mother. He didn’t talk about his home life much at school to his friends, but his football coaches knew and asked him to show up. 

"There is a lot that I have missed out on. The fact there is nothing that I can do about that, it bothers me," Yohana admitted. 

The lessons he’s learning are helping him understand life better to better his life. It’s a beautiful thing because Yohana has big dreams. 

"I want to be an engineer," he said.  

While fathers may be pouring into these young men who are from a younger generation, Smith says what the young men don't realize is that they're helping these fathers, too. 

"My daughter is in elementary school and it kind of gives me insight into what is coming up in the future and what type of hurdles she might have to deal with," Smith said.