Donyel and Danyel Torsell

“I believe a lot of men don’t step up to the plate because of lack of knowledge—they just don’t know what to do. When you hear sports figures in football or baseball, they always say, ‘I love you, Ma,’ on TV. They never say, ‘I love you, Dad.’ And that’s because there’s a lot of single women out there raising kids. But I believe a lot of men should step up to the plate and they want to. The program has taught me how to be more responsible. Here you talk about real issues and real responsibilities.”

Growing up in Baltimore with a father who served as a strong role model, Donyel Torsell wanted to be a lawyer because he could talk his way through everything—and also because he liked to watch the TV show “Perry Mason.” His supportive parents made sure he steered clear of drugs and alcohol and urged him to earn his high school diploma.

While searching for resources that would enable him to gain custody of his daughter, Danyel, he found the Baltimore Responsible Fatherhood Project (BRFP) on the internet. Donyel brought all of his resources to his daughter’s custody hearing: a parenting class certificate from BRFP, his CFUF case manager, an elder from his church, another parent from his daughter’s cheerleading team, his mother, and his aunt. The result: He received custody of his daughter.

“I believe a lot of men don’t step up to the plate because of lack of knowledge—they just don’t know what to do... ”