Who We Are

About the NAHDN

Our History

It all began back in 2003 with 3 stay at-home dads and a vision…
Mike Stilwell, Peter Steinberg and Matt Vossler were a trio of at-home dads from the Washington D.C. area involved in a great local playgroup. They wondered why there wasn’t a national network so other at-home dads around the country could find great local playgroups like theirs. They got together with an attorney and, by early 2006, incorporated the first and only national non-profit organization for at-home dads, Daddyshome, Inc.

Name Change

On May 7, 2012, the name of the organization changed from Daddyshome, Inc. to The National At-Home Dad Network (NAHDN). The name change was made to more clearly define what the organization does, what it stands for and explain its objective.

An annual convention

Back in 1995, Dr. Robert Frank, now a former Professor of Psychology at Oakton Community College in the Chicago area, began an annual convention for at-home dads as part of his study of this unique family arrangement. As more and more dads learned about the event, it grew into a way for stay-at-home dads to connect and enhance their parenting skills.

After 10 years, regular attendees Andy Ferguson, Dayv Glusing, Phil Andrew, Hogan Hilling, Brian Chalmers and others with The National At-Home Dad Network took over the responsibility of organizing the Convention. They took the Convention “on the road,” starting a tradition of hosting in different destination cities throughout the U.S.

Going by the name HomeDadCon since 2016, the convention is the 2nd longest-running fatherhood event in the country and still proudly organized by dads for dads.