Incarcerated dads bond with kids through nonprofit

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — A group of dads is getting a unique chance to bond with their kids. They are doing it while in jail.

For three years the non-profit You Yes You! has partnered with the Putnamville Correctional facility to make it happen.

The idea is to really help them stay bonded through incarceration,” said You Yes You! executive director Ericka Sanders.

Desmonaye Irons knows firsthand the bond You Yes You! helps build. It provided that bonding time with her dad.

“When you have that help with the program and seeing each other and like on holidays building their bond it’s really important,” she said.

It started small with just a father-daughter dance. But, it ballooned into much more. The program now provides re-entry workshops, book clubs, dances and parties for fathers and their children.

“I would be sitting next to him that would be like hugs and dances so it was different,” said Irons.

She said she’s still working on building that bond with her father but some of the things she’s learned in that program is what keeps her motivated as she finishes up her education at IUPUI.

“From the program I just feel more stronger and I can,” she said.

A $50,000 grant from United Way is expected to help expand to a new facility and implement new programs.

“I understand the brokenness the emptiness no matter how old you are we are all daddy’s girls inside right,” said Sanders.