It’s no secret that Father’s Day doesn’t receive the same recognition as Mother’s Day. In many Black households, that reality has been passed down across generations—fathers often praised in theory but not always uplifted in practice. But when a Black father consistently shows up, leads with love, guides with strength, and brings his full self to his children and community, that is not a small thing. That is the foundation of something sacred. That’s why Dream Studio Detroit is creating space to honor it.
On Saturday, June 14 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Dream Studio Detroit will host its second annual Father’s Day Brunch at the Wayne County Community College District Northwest Campus, located at 8200 West Outer Drive in Detroit. The event is free to the public and centers Black men who are fathers, father figures, and community leaders. It also welcomes families—children, teens, elders, and partners—to witness and participate in a celebration rarely offered but deeply necessary.
The brunch is more than a plate of food and a speaker lineup. It’s a restoration of presence. A space for Black men to be seen, not just for what they provide, but for who they are. It’s also a declaration that the work Black fathers do inside homes, schools, churches, and barbershops deserves more than passing recognition. It requires space, reflection, gratitude, and public celebration.
Danielle North, CEO and co-founder of Dream Studio Detroit, stands at the helm of the event alongside her husband, Eugene North Sr., who serves as Managing Director. Together, they lead a nonprofit designed to support Black families in achieving economic mobility and generational stability. Their work includes entrepreneurship workshops, peer support gatherings, and mentorship spaces tailored to the needs of Black men and their families. The Father’s Day Brunch is part of a larger body of work through their Black Male Achievement Initiative (BMAI).
“The purpose of our Father’s Day Brunch is to provide a space for Black fathers in the community to really feel celebrated,” said Danielle North. “We want to recognize the love, guidance, and support these men provide, while also welcoming entire families, including teens and children, to a space where they can feel the energy and power of community support.”
This year’s brunch will feature reflections from Dr. Curtis Lewis, CEO of the Black Male Education Alliance; Jasahn Larsosa, executive director of the GreenLight Fund; and Pastor Sonny Smith of Detroit Church. Each speaker brings deep commitment and lived connection to Detroit’s Black community. They are not figureheads placed on a program for optics—they are rooted in this work. Their presence speaks to the intentionality of the event.
Dream Studio Detroit designed this moment to reach beyond praise. The brunch serves as a cultural mirror, offering Black fathers a glimpse of how their community sees them when they are embraced without critique or condition. This is especially meaningful for children who will witness their fathers being honored. Those memories become internalized examples of care and community, reshaping what love and leadership look like in real time.
Last year’s brunch set a powerful precedent. It wasn’t about formality. It was about feeling. Danielle North remembers it clearly. “We heard from amazing Black community leaders, enjoyed a delicious brunch, and left with a greater sense of how strong our community is. I knew then this needed to be an annual event.”
The Norths responded by building out this year’s event with even more intention. The brunch remains part of the Black Male Achievement Initiative, but it stands on its own as a reminder that programming doesn’t have to be transactional to be transformational.
Beyond the brunch, BMAI includes ‘Barber Shop Talk,’ a multigenerational conversation series where older men mentor younger men in open, culturally grounded settings. These conversations are not rehearsed. They are rooted. They give men space to unpack, learn, and lead. That same energy is woven into the June 14 event—quietly shaping an environment where vulnerability is allowed and affirmation is expected.
“What we are doing with BMAI, along with all the programming of Dream Studio Detroit, is elevating entire families to achieve economic mobility through support, education, resources, and community,” North explained. “An important part of that is celebrating and honoring every member of our families. On June 14, we celebrate our dads.”
Families can register to attend the brunch at dreamstudiodetroit.org. There is no cost to attend, and the environment is designed to be inclusive, loving, and welcoming. Whether a guest is a first-time father, a grandfather, or a community member who has stepped into a fathering role, they are welcome in the room.
Later this year, Dream Studio Detroit will open a physical location in Detroit’s Cody Rouge neighborhood. That decision wasn’t about convenience. It was about purpose. Cody Rouge is home to families who live the realities that nonprofits often write about but rarely show up for. By establishing a brick-and-mortar presence in that community, Dream Studio Detroit is embedding itself deeper into the lives of the people it serves.
Too often, events like this are spoken about as unique exceptions. That framing misses the truth. Black men have always shown up. They have always built. They have always carried the weight. But systems often fail to recognize them. Media often distorts them. Institutions often exclude them. That is why gatherings like this brunch are necessary—not for performance, but for repair.
The brunch is not responding to a holiday marketing campaign. It is responding to the lived reality of men who have done the work with little applause and even less support. It offers a space where their stories can be centered without revision. It creates an atmosphere where children can look at their fathers and understand the value of that love in full context.
This is not about uplifting a perfect version of fatherhood. It is about honoring the daily decision to stay present, to be honest, to grow, and to love in public. Those decisions are often made without celebration. But on June 14, the room will make space for celebration in full.
That celebration won’t erase hardship. It won’t rewrite systemic failures. But it will affirm that joy belongs to Black men, too. It will confirm that love can be soft and strong at once. It will offer a moment of reflection that lingers long after the last plate is cleared.
Dream Studio Detroit isn’t building temporary experiences. They are investing in cultural infrastructure. They are creating spaces that hold memory, pride, and possibility. What they’re shaping on June 14 is not a token gesture—it is a commitment to see Black men whole and hold them up with the same care they’ve extended to everyone else for generations.
This is not just an event. It’s a necessary interruption to a long-standing imbalance in how we honor fatherhood in our communities. Detroit deserves more of this. Our fathers deserve all of this.
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