Kalvin Bridgewater, founder of Daddy Stroller Social Club, shares what
Kalvin Bridgewater, founder of Daddy Stroller Social Club, shares what fatherhood means to him. We connected with Kalvin after discovering the Dallas community of dads that Kalvin created. And Kalvin doesn't just talk about change. He acts on it.
In a park in Dallas, a group of fathers are making waves. A man with muscular biceps pushes a stroller with one hand and carries a toddler in the other. A Dad with locs crouches next to his daughter, feeding her a jar of applesauce. Childish laughter floats through the air as a dad plays peekaboo with his little one. This is the Daddy Stroller Social Club (DSSC), founded by Kalvin Bridgewater—a community “where dads of color come together to celebrate fatherhood and friendship in a supportive community,” while connecting with their children.
As founders of Hart & Hero, we have had countless conversations about the gender play gap, and about strollers in particular. While a doll stroller is a staple in the playroom of little girls, parents of boys are reluctant to give them to their sons. During conversations with parents, one much-feared word we kept hearing was “soft.” Boys should be tough, strong, even aggressive. But toys that celebrate being kind and gentle? That would make them soft. Weak.
The Daddy Stroller Social Club is helping rewrite that narrative; breaking generational cycles and creating a space where vulnerability and mental health is no longer taboo. “Anyone can build muscle,” says Kalvin, “But it takes real strength to build heart.”
We recently had the privilege of sitting down with him to discuss fatherhood, traditional gender roles, and mental health. "After my daughter was born, things changed," Kalvin reminisces. "She was born during Covid, and fatherhood was an adjustment. But while checking in on the mental health of the mom is automatic, addressing postpartum depression in new dads is unheard of."
Kalvin's wife Carmen is a sought-after birth photographer with a large network in the birth community. When Kalvin discovered that Eve, a local doula, organized monthly stroller-walks in the park for new moms, he decided to do the same for dads, and the DSSC was born. His daughter loved the trips to the park with her friends, and the dads got to connect over the struggles and joys of fatherhood. Over the three years since its inception, the DSSC snowballed. Hundreds joined the June walk, and dads all around the world are contacting Kalvin about opening their own chapters.
Kalvin doesn’t just talk of changing the future, he lives it through reshaping perceptions of fatherhood, and proving that true strength lies not just in muscles but in the courage to embrace vulnerability and compassion.
Donate at https://www.daddystrollersocialclub.com/
