You can't put a dollar amount on presence: young, non-resident, low-income, African American fathers.

Aims and objectives: The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study was to describe the lived experiences of young, non-resident, low-income, African-American fathers.

Methods: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with a convenience sample of 6 men enrolled in the Omaha Healthy Start, Fathers for a Lifetime Program.

Results: The following themes were identified: (a) A Work in Progress: Fatherhood Investment; (b) A Little Island by Myself: Barriers to Fathering; (c) I'm Going to be There From Day One to Infinity: Presence; and (d) The Tomorrow Dad: Not Like my Dad. Barriers to fathering created resource-poor environments posing challenges to involvement.

Conclusions: Dispelling the myth of the "hit-and-run" father or the "package deal" remains a concern for fathers and their children. Nurses can develop early assessment strategies and interventions to help African American fathers with their parenting involvement. Fathers can be encouraged to attend community-based fathering programs to increase investment opportunities.