Nearly 2,000 sleepy-eyed students crawl through the doors every Friday morning anxious to get through one last day before returning home to relax for the weekend. At such an early hour, it’s easy to mistake the students for zombies as they swarm toward the school. Pair that with a lack of breakfast and you’ve got a deadly combination of angry and hungry children. Not something any first period teacher should have to deal with.

Unfortunately, no one can force students to eat a nutritious meal before heading to school, and it’s impossible to rewind the clock three hours. So Grateful Dads come in to make students’ days just a little brighter.

Those joyful strangers who high-five students as they walk into the building are fathers who wake up extra early every Friday to greet students as they enter. They jumpstart Fridays with a small burst of sugar and an energetic gesture.

“Some kids never get to hear the words ‘Good morning’ and ‘Have a good day,’” 1951 LHS graduate and Grateful Dad Marshall Durham said. “We enjoy doing that.”

What started years ago as a small group of men pairing up with home-economics teachers has evolved into a now devoted and faithful team of 10 different men who serve the community every Friday morning.

“There are many other things [our volunteers] could be doing, but they choose to be here,” assistant principal Teresa Wells said. “I think it’s a wonderful program and they take it seriously.”

About one-fourth of American children live in mother-only families. Of the children living with their mothers, 35 percent never see their fathers. The Grateful Dads help to act as active, positive male role models. It allows students to see the caring nature and support of father figures in the community.

“One of the administrators made the point that there aren’t enough dads on the campus, and that many students are coming from broken homes and don’t have a male figure in their family,” father and Grateful Dad John West said. “And that breaks my heart.”

A simple act of kindness can have the biggest impact on someone’s day. This is a goal that the Grateful Dads set out to achieve every Friday morning. It’s so easy to underestimate the power of a little encouragement, and having someone who understands that power is a gift.

“It’s only about 30 minutes of my time a week to make a difference in a lot of people’s lives, so I’m happy to do it,” West said. “My son has autism spectrum disorder so not only is this important because he’s my son, but I want to go out of my way to let him know that [I’m] thinking about him.”