Latest news with #BrooklynStrollClub
Yahoo
22-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Brooklyn Dad's Push for Support Transforms into a 1,500-Strong Fatherhood Community
When Parents Next Gen winner Joe Gonzales became a father, he noticed how isolating it could be. That's why he created Brooklyn Stroll, a community for dads that's taken the borough by storm. After the birth of his son, Joe Gonzales was struck by how isolating new parenthood could be. He searched for a community of dads, somewhere to share everything from teething tips to the more vulnerable sides of fatherhood, like mental health, but came up empty. So, he created one himself— the Brooklyn Stroll Club. Gonzales' dedication to improving his community by creating connection is why he's a Parents Next Gen winner. Gonzales introduced the idea on TikTok, and it quickly took flight. His post went viral, drawing thousands of views, likes, and comments from dads craving the same connection. What began as a simple idea has grown into a thriving community of more than 1,500 fathers, offering online and in-person connections. While many members are still deep in the trenches of sleepless nights and midnight feedings, the Brooklyn Stroll Club has become a space for dads in all stages of parenting. It's a place to share stories, get advice, and build meaningful relationships rooted in shared experience. We sat down with Gonzales to learn more about the future of the Brooklyn Stroll Club—and his vision for a more connected, compassionate generation of fathers. What inspired you? How did this start? I started the Brooklyn Stroll Club in 2024 when I became a dad, and my life changed completely. Really, we just started in the park as dads just wanting to meet up. And it quickly grew to over 1,500 dads who are on our online community who chat daily about their experiences, tips, and are really just looking for encouragement in fatherhood. And then we do monthly meetups to really help dads build confidence. For some dads, it's their first time outside with their child. I know your son is young. How are you raising him to be a changemaker? I'm raising my son to be a changemaker by showing him that his parents take risks, love deeply, and pursue things they're passionate about. And I want him to feel confident in everything he does, in everything he tries. Even though he is little, he is always watching. I'm modeling the behavior for him so he can implement it later. I'm raising my kid to be a changemaker by the way we live our lives. It's nice that you'll get to grow with these fathers because it sounds like you're all kind of in the same phase. Are there other dads at different stages of their journeys? It's been really cool being a dad with a one-year-old because we've seen dads in the community who have just learned they are expecting. Then some dads have newborns. Those guys are in the trenches of figuring out how to do it. Then we have dads who have older kids, so they can share knowledge from their experiences with us. There's a little bit of everything. We hope to encourage not only the dads who are coming in, but also ourselves as we grow together. The community changes every year, and it changes with every kid. Every person's journey of fatherhood is unique. And so you can find somebody who has at least something you can relate to in the community. And I think that's super important. With all of the people you've met and talked to, what's one thing you've heard that stuck with you? One sentiment that I hear from the community is that they didn't know how much they needed the community, and I think that's the most important thing: being able to be vulnerable and open. And when you can find that and truly understand that it's helping you and growing you, I believe we can shape the next generation of fathers. At some point, the strollers get retired. Do you see meet-ups where it's sometimes just dads without their kids? We want to create experiences not only for dads and their children, but also experiences to help dads with mental health, self-care, and everything that goes along with processing fatherhood. Once we did a boxing meetup, and in the future, we want to do meditation classes, things like that. It's like this: How do we serve ourselves better? How can we better serve our families? How can we better serve the community around us? Those are the questions that we hope to answer as we become better fathers. Fatherhood is complex. Our hope is to give dads the tools that they need to be better for their families and themselves. The conversations I've had with dads are that they put themselves last, and I think that's always tough to hear. I'm sure people hear 'Stroll Club' and think you're just having meetups with your children. But this is really about dads finding connection and that friendship. Yes, that's the most important thing. Dads in a group chat talking about what they're going to do for dinner, what they're going to do for bedtime, or how they're going to do it. To me, that's the most impactful part of it. When you're with your kid, it's always chaos, but there's beauty in that as well. Read the original article on Parents Solve the daily Crossword
New York Times
12-04-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Times
Rolling With Their Babies
On a warm Saturday morning in March, while the 20-something influencers and young finance bros of Williamsburg were still asleep, a group of more than 30 men gathered in McCarren Park. Some were coming from as far as the Catskills and others from a few steps away. Greetings transitioned to talk of sleep training and stroller envy, and the bonding happened quickly. After all, they all had one major thing in common: babies. 'How old is yours?' they asked one another as the group grew. Benjamin Velez, 32, jogged up to the crowd with his 1-year-old daughter, Wynter, fresh from working an overnight shift as a switchboard operator and receptionist. One of the other men commented on the Monster energy drink in his stroller, and Mr. Velez pointed out that it also contained coffee. Victor Ayala, 36, a quality control inspector, and his 2-year-old, Cassius, pulled up to the park in an Uber from Cobble Hill. The pair was praised for their style: Mr. Ayala was wearing a jersey, a white canvas jacket with black stripes, yellow sneakers and a Brooklyn Stroll Club hat. Cassius was kicking back in a Bape x Airbuggy stroller that his dad's friend had shipped from Japan. As the group prepared to take a lap around the park before heading to Canopy, a Williamsburg play space for children ages four and under, Calvin Eng, 30, the chef and owner of the Cantonese restaurant Bonnie's and author of 'Salt Sugar MSG,' joined the pack with his 2½-year-old son, Levi. He was greeted by Joe Gonzales, 32, who treated him like they'd known each other for years, except it was their first time meeting. Walking, after all, is what the Brooklyn Stroll Club does best. The group was started in October by Mr. Gonzales, a senior producer at a creative agency and first-time father to a 10-month-old son named Sol. 'Moms have been holding it down for so long and are so great at building community,' Mr. Gonzales said. 'I didn't have a lot of dad friends in New York, and I really wanted to connect with people who were going through a similar experience,' he added. The group has grown into a community of dads who have actually become friends. And the buzz is growing. 'When Joe releases an event, it's like a sneaker drop,' said Colin Rocker, a 28-year-old content creator and the father of a 9-month-old son named Isaiah, adding that he had not been able to snag the free tickets for the February meetup. In the colder months, the dads had to get creative and gather indoors, but with an indoor space came limited capacity. Mr. Gonzales shares the events on a Discord channel he created with more than 1,000 members, and when the 50 tickets are released at noon, there's a mad dash to snatch them up. Everyone was on time, a notable feat when you're dealing with getting a child out the door. The dads cross the street in a herd of about 35 babies and men, swapping stories about what their partners are up to that morning. Somehow, no meltdowns had occurred. Yet. The line to get into Canopy almost wrapped around the block. 'We used to wait in line to get into the club,' remarked Mike McGlarkner, a 38-year-old construction flagger from Harlem, there with his 2-year-old son, Jackson, to the dad behind him. Slowly, the dads and their children pile into the elevator. Once they're checked in, dads and children removed their shoes. A pair of baby Air Jordans are tucked inside an adult pair. Mr. Rocker, the 28-year-old content creator, feels like a young dad by city standards. 'In New York, having a baby at 28 is a teen pregnancy,' he said, adding that none of his friends are currently sharing his experience. Nearby, Samuel Ourlicht, a 28-year-old father to a 1½-year-old daughter, Zuriah, who lives in the South Bronx and works in a cookie shop, related. 'I was looking for something like this, but I didn't think I'd be able to find it, and then I found Joe on Instagram,' Mr. Rocker said, sitting on a couch under a bookshelf while Isaiah slept on his chest. 'The kid can't hang,' he joked. By the windows, some dads took a break to feed their children a snack. Luis Cisneros, a 34-year-old small business owner who says he 'waited' to have children, sat on the floor with his son Noah, who took his very first steps that morning. And a few feet away, past a rocking horse and conversations about 'Bluey' and 'Miss Rachel,' Rene Jimenez, 31, the assistant dean of students at the Dalton School, balanced his 19-month-old daughter, Aubrey, on his hip. 'Fatherhood was a very isolating experience at first,' he said, and a nearby dad nodded in agreement. Mr. Jimenez had traveled from East Harlem for the meetup. 'To be in a community with other men who are trying to figure out how to be really good dads and break cycles that have been repeated for years — it's really important,' he said. As the inevitable silent countdown to sleepy temper tantrums began, the buzz of the play space shifted to a bright, airy side room. Eganam Segbefia, a trumpet player known as ÉGO, broke out his instrument to wrap up the festivities. While his typical gig involves playing at halftime during Knicks games at Madison Square Garden, on this day he played songs like 'Bare Necessities' from 'The Jungle Book' and 'Under the Sea' from 'The Little Mermaid.' There was a lot of dancing, plenty of smiles and before long, some tears. After a long day, the children needed a nap. The dads, fighting off their own yawns and heavy eyelids, silently agreed they could use one, too.
