Thriving Dadless

About Us

Today, more than 1/3rd of American Children are growing up with an absent father. Did you know that kids who live in a father-less household are 4 times more likely to grow up in poverty than their peers? Did you know that 71% of high-school drop outs come from father-less homes? Did you know that children from single-parent homes are more than twice as likely to commit suicide? Fatherlessness is a devastating crisis with symptoms that can be felt throughout every corner of society. In America, multiple generations now wander without ever having had the love, guidance, or teaching of a devoted father.
In 2023, Rick Spillers founded Thriving Dadless as a response to that emptiness. Raised by a single mother in poverty, it took him decades of searching and learning to discover how to become a healthy man. And this would not have been possible without a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, and plenty of help along the way from older men who saw the need and made an investment.
Thriving Dadless is a Christian faith-based organization which seeks to combat the effects of fatherlessness through a multi-pronged approach: Producing Books, lesson plans, and other resources which provide teaching to both young people and adults, Actively mentoring young people through adventure sports such as camping trips, snorkeling, and paintball, and a world-class blog dedicated to aiding single mothers in their everyday attempts to raise young boys into honorable men. We partner with local churches and community organizations to further our mission, which is to help the fatherless thrive in all areas of their life and faith.