Mother says she was turned away at 'Donuts With Dad' school event for not being a 'male figure'

Mothers of elementary school students in Ocala, Fla., were sent away in tears from a recent school event after they were told they could not attend.

Hammett L. Bowen Jr. Elementary School hosted a “Donuts With Dad” event on Friday in an effort to show appreciation for the male figures in the students’ life.

According to Orlando news station WFTV, only men were allowed to attend the event. That might be fine for children whose family includes a father or other supportive male family members, but that is not the case for every student.

The event was part of the school’s Strong Fathers Strong Families Initiative, which encourages the involvement of male figures in students’ lives.

The district told WFTV that children without an adult male to accompany them were allowed to eat doughnuts and were never separated from the group. Still, one mother, Ashley Arroyo, said she felt that her child was being shamed for not having a father present.

“Their biological father chooses not to be in their life,” she said. “So let’s go ahead and shame a child for their dad trying not to be in their life?”

Arroyo arrived for the doughnut event and was told, “This is for dads only.”

“They said, ‘You’re not a guy. You’re not a male figure,'” Arroyo said. “I said, ‘Well, that’s kind of messed up.’ Some of these kids don’t have a grandfather. Some of these kids don’t have an uncle.”

Arroyo said that other mothers, including one who had had to take out a protection order against her child’s father, left the school distraught. Another child’s father was deployed overseas, the mother told WFTV.

The district told WFTV that the school holds a Muffins for Moms event later in the year, but Arroyo said she wonders why the events are not more inclusive, especially if the events leave kids “distracted and feeling sad for the day.”

Neither Ashley Arroyo nor Hammett L. Bowen Jr. Elementary School principal Traci Crawford immediately responded to Yahoo Lifestyle’s requests for comment.

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