Rock Star, Scott Stapp, receives Fatherhood honor

PRESS RELEASE

Women For Fatherhood, a volunteer organization dedicated to Equality for All Parents and All
Children, will be opening their online Fatherhood Hall of Fame this month. It is our wish to bring
the name of Fathers back into a positive light. We believe that instead of condemning fathers, we
should empower them to live up to the awesome potential that has been bestowed upon them.
Honoring positive role models is a good start" the groups President, Kasey Blake said. Women
For Fatherhood, PO BOX 604394, Bayside, NY 11360-4394. www.women4fatherhood.org

On June 24, 2000, Women For Fatherhood will present the Fatherhood Hall of Fame Award to its
first inductee, Scott Stapp, the lead singer and lyricist of the rock group Creed. The award will be
presented by Sari M. Friedman, Esq., national spokesperson for Women for Fatherhood, and KC
Blake, founder of Women for Fatherhood, at the Meadows Music Theatre in Hartford,
Connecticut. Scott will be presented with a lucite statue containing an etching of a father with a
child on his shoulders. The child is reaching for an apple in a tree . . . a feat he wouldn't be able to
achieve without his father's assistance. The inscription reads, Women for Fatherhood honors
Scott Stapp, whose arms will always be wide open for Jagger"

"Scott doesn't live up to the stereotype that most lead rock singers evoke," said Scott's friend and
Women for Fatherhood member Cindy McNeely, who nominated Scott for the Fatherhood Hall of
Fame award. In nominating Scott, Cindy wrote that he has "earned a reputation for baring his
heart and his soul in his lyrics, and the truth is that this talented young man lives his day-to-day
life in much the same way. As Scott would be quick to admit, a large part of what keeps him
rooted to reality, although he lives a fairy-tale life, is his twenty-month-old son, Jagger. There is
no doubt that Jagger comes first in Scott's life. Undoubtedly, Scott has employed genuineness
and compassion, guidance and unconditional loyalty, in his role as Jagger's father. Although he
would probably feel uncomfortable being heralded as such due to his natural sense of humility, he
stands as a true role model for all fathers. He is not ashamed to tell anyone how much he loves
and is proud of Jagger, and how happy he is to be a father."

Cindy also noted that the release of the song, "With Arms Wide Open," which Scott wrote upon
learning that he was to become a father, appears to be making a positive impact on young men
facing fatherhood. "Recently, while we were in Pennsylvania with Creed for one of their concerts
and listening to a local radio station, we heard a young man call and request 'With Arms Wide
Open,'" wrote Cindy. "The man stated that his wife was pregnant, and that friends had urged him
to listen to the song because it so effectively communicated the joy, and awesome responsibility,
of becoming a father. It was clear to me that 'With Arms Wide Open' was helping this young man
focus on the importance of assuming an integral role as a father . So often, our culture tends to
communicate quite the opposite to fathers, but the reality is that children need fathers just as much
as mothers. 'With Arms Wide Open' is getting that message across to many young men and
women who are experiencing parenthood, in a manner which many other media cannot achieve,"
wrote Cindy.

There is no doubt that Scott believes in and supports the rights of fathers to love, care for, and
parent their children as much as anyone else. Therefore, Women for Fatherhood is proud to
honor Scott Stapp as its first inductee into its Fatherhood Hall of Fame.