One Dad’s Weekly Library Trips With His Baby Grew Into a Beloved Community for Fathers

It began as a simple routine between a father and his infant daughter. In Atlanta, Georgia, Khari Arnold started taking his four-month-old daughter, Ariah, to the local library each week. The visits were quiet and unremarkable — until Arnold realised that other dads might value the same thing, and decided to open the ritual up to his community.

That decision gave rise to “Library Dads,” a free gathering that brings fathers and their young children together at local libraries. The mission is twofold: nurturing early literacy skills through shared reading, and normalising the sight of engaged, present fathers spending intentional time with their kids. The events are free to attend, and they now fill up quickly — a sign of just how much hunger there was for exactly this kind of space.

“In Atlanta, Georgia, Khari Arnold started taking his four-month-old daughter, Ariah, to the local library each week.”

For the fathers who show up, the impact is immediate. Kassell Scott, who brings his three-year-old daughter Amahle, described the experience as motivating: “It was eye-opening to see other dads like myself who are engaged, and it was motivating as well.” Derrick Lampkin, who attends with his sons Dominique and Tristan and his seven-month-old daughter Madeleine Sophia, said he keeps coming back because “it shows my boys that dads show up. They’re there, and it’s a good community.”

That phrase — dads show up — has become the heart of the movement, alongside a message about bonding through books and building brotherhood among fathers. From one man’s weekly trip to the library, a small institution now offers something increasingly precious: a welcoming, no-cost place where fathers can learn from one another, model presence for their children, and turn an ordinary errand into a source of connection for an entire neighborhood.