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Today’s “Real Fathers, Real Men” winner is Stephen Ferguson of Grandview, Missouri.

Dear Tom Joyner:

Stephen Ferguson is a good man. This single father of two took on the task of raising his two daughters alone after their mother took a job traveling. He and his first wife were divorced but it was decided that for his 3 year old and 11 year old daughters, living with him would provide much more stability. Being raised in the D.C. area, Stephen was used to life on the east coast. But because the girl’s maternal grandparents lived in Kansas, he packed up and moved so that the girls could be closer to their mother’s family.

Through job loss and raising two little girls alone, combing hair, sometimes working two and three jobs at a time, Stephen has guided his now 23-year-old daughter through high school into veterinarian school in Florida. His youngest , now 16, is a singing and violin playing virtuoso. We were married in August of 2012 and planned a honeymoon for October 2012. But as fate would have it, the 16 year old dropped her violin and needed a new or repaired one. We took the budget from the honeymoon and put it on the violin. I could see the disappointment in his face. When I faced the possibility of a cancer diagnosis, he was there for me all the way.

Stephen puts his family and loved ones far above his own wants and needs. I love this man, who always takes his last to help everyone else. Stephen is also an accomplished jazz bassist and guitarist. We want to finish our basement so he can use part of it for his equipment. But between college expenses for his daughter and our son and our baby girl’s travel and violin, there just isn’t any money left. He deserves to be blessed with a studio because he blesses so many people and never thinks of himself.

Sincerely,

Deborah Ferguson