Today we’d like to introduce you to Albert Pooley.
Hi Albert, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
Albert Mark Pooley was born to the Hopi and Navajo Tribes in Northern Arizona, where he grew close to both cultures on the reservation. The love of his father and mother taught him outstanding life lessons. From Mr. Pooley’s early youth, he witnessed the struggles and challenges of his people, filling his heart with the desire to help.
Mr. Pooley received his Bachelor of Science from Brigham Young University in 1971. his Master of Social Work from the University of Utah in 1973 and his Master of Public Administration from the University of Denver in 1977. He was trained as a marriage and family therapist and was a therapist for several Native tribes. He was asked to be the executive director of training for the National Indian Board of Alcohol and drugs and eventually a consultant for the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NID) and the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse. (NIA) They provided assistance and guidance in drug and alcohol addictions within the tribes throughout the United States. Mr. Pooley also started small side ventures in different businesses.
Mr. Pooley decided to connect with three local tribes in the Phoenix area to teach in their jails. The focus on fathers in the Million Man March in Washington D.C. on October of 1995 became very popular at which point Mr. Pooley was inspired to write his own curriculum for Native fathers calling it Fatherhood is Sacred®. After several months of teaching his curriculum in these Native communities, the men encouraged him to add a curriculum for their wives. Motherhood is Sacred® was born and has continued on for over 20 years helping many Natives to strengthen their families. The creation of his nonprofit organization, Native American Fatherhood and Families Association (NAFFA), has taken him all over the country and Canada to over 350 tribes. He also added five more curriculum: Linking Generations by Strengthening Relationships®, Addressing Family Violence and Abuse©, Suicide Prevention©, Transforming Tomorrows Youth™ and the NAFFA Re-entry/Recovery Wellness Modalities. Mr. Pooley is following his vision to expand internationally and to all non-native communities in all countries.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Running a nonprofit like the Native American Fatherhood and Families Association means constantly balancing mission with survival, and funding is often the most persistent challenge. Grants can be highly competitive and short-term, making it difficult to sustain long-term programs or retain staff.
Finding trustworthy and committed employees presents another layer of difficulty. NAFFA often cannot compete with private-sector salaries, which can limit the pool of applicants or lead to high turnover. Beyond skills and qualifications, organizations like NAFFA need people who genuinely respect and understand Native communities as well as honest work ethics, That kind of alignment is harder to assess in hiring but critical to maintain integrity and trust. When staff turnover happens, it can disrupt relationships with the community, which are often built slowly and through consistency.
Spreading awareness of NAFFA’s mission and vision is also a significant hurdle. NAFFA struggles with limited marketing budgets and rely heavily on word-of-mouth, partnerships, and grassroots outreach.
Despite these challenges, the work itself remains vital. Organizations like NAFFA are not only providing behavioral health services but strengthening identity, self-worth, purpose and family structure. The obstacles are real, but so is the long-term impact making the effort to overcome them both necessary and meaningful.
As you know, we’re big fans of Native American Fatherhood and Families Association. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
As a professional marriage and family therapist, Mr. Pooley saw the disintegration of his people and wanted to help them strengthen their families. Families are the heart of the Native people and he knew that strengthening the parents in the home will eventually strengthen a nation.
No other Native organization strengthens families as NAFFA does. Rooted in a simple but powerful belief that strong families are the foundation of strong communities, NAFFA was created to restore the role of fathers and strengthen the family unit by bringing both fathers and mothers back into active, responsible, and loving participation in their children’s lives.
At its core, NAFFA is not just a service provider, it is a movement centered on personal responsibility and family leadership. The organization specializes in culturally grounded curricula that speak directly to Native communities while remaining inclusive to all. Since 2003, Fatherhood Is Sacred® / Motherhood Is Sacred®, Linking Generations by Strengthening Relationships®, Addressing Family Violence & Abuse©, Suicide Prevention© and Transforming Tomorrows Youth are designed to rebuild identity, strengthen relationships, and address deep-rooted social challenges through a strengths-based, culturally respectful approach. These programs are widely used across the U.S. and Canada, with thousands of trained facilitators and tens of thousands of parents impacted.
What truly sets NAFFA apart is its philosophy that fathers are not the problem—they are the solution. This perspective challenges many conventional social service models and reframes men, especially Native men, as essential leaders in healing families and communities. Rather than focusing on deficits, NAFFA emphasizes cultural pride, personal growth, and the sacred roles of parenthood, using encouragement, education, and community-based support to inspire lasting change. Their approach blends traditional values with practical life skills, creating programs that are not only effective but deeply meaningful to participants.
NAFFA is most proud of reputation it has built for being culturally grounded, community-driven, and transformational. The organization has worked with hundreds of tribes and agencies, helping families navigate issues like substance abuse and domestic violence while restoring hope, dignity, and connection. What makes NAFFA unique is that its work doesn’t just deliver services—it changes mindsets, helping individuals rediscover their value and responsibility within the family.
Through our NAFFA Wellness organization, Mr. Pooley, had created two wellness modalities: NAFFA Re-entry Modality and NAFFA Recovery Modality.
All curricula use time honored cultural principles and practices as a foundation to build strong families that are resilient to divorce, domestic and substance abuse, suicide and human trafficking. The result of these programs has been an increased awareness of the sacred purposes of families with strengthened relationships and communities. Over 80,000 parents have enrolled in local chapters and over 2,500 facilitators have been certified to teach the FIS/MIS curriculum across the US and Canada.
What NAFFA wants readers to know is that their work is about more than programs, it’s about restoring the sacredness of family. They offer training, certification, community education, and culturally based curricula that empower people to become better parents, partners, and leaders. Their message is one of hope: when fathers and mothers are supported, respected, and equipped, families can heal and when families heal, entire communities grow stronger.
Mission Statement: To strengthen, keep and reunite families by responsibly involving fathers and mothers in the lives of their children, families, and communities.
Vision Statement: To inspire fathers and mothers to become healthy models of parenting everywhere.
Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc?
Mr. Pooley is not an avid reader nor does he listen to podcasts. He writes more than anything else and spends time with his family.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.nativeamericanfathers.org
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nativeamericanfatherhood/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100064657032687#
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/13571111/
- Twitter: https://x.com/NAFatherhood
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@AZNAFFA8/videos
