The Gerst Family: A Commitment to Young Fathers

As the only father-son duo currently serving on Metropolitan’s Board of Directors together, it is only fitting that Gary and Graham Gerst are champions and steadfast supporters of our Young Fathers program. In 2016, the program was renamed the Gerst Family Young Fathers program, in honor of the family’s support and leadership. Thanks to a generous investment by the family in the Campaign to MPower Families, the program has now doubled in size and serves nearly 100 fathers each year.

Gary Gerst explains why he chose to invest in the Young Fathers program:

“Young Fathers has always been one of my favorite programs, because as a father and grandfather, I can relate to it. I was so inspired by the young fathers in the program, and how they have turned their lives around. And I knew from personal experience how important this was to them, to their children and to the mothers of their children as well.

Over the years, I have observed just how dedicated and effective the people are who run the program. The fact that we’ve been able to grow and serve more fathers, and to track the success of the program and document it so that we know the program is effective, is really important to me.”

Graham, a partner at Global IP Law Group, has also become involved in the Gerst Family Young Fathers Program by speaking to fathers about their legal rights during family law clinics offered to participants.

We are so grateful for the Gerst family’s dedication to this program—thank you for being champions of our young fathers!

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