ST. GEORGE – Father’s Day is a day typically associated with the purchasing of power tools, sporting equipment, barbecue supplies and, of course, really bad ties. But it is also a day to reflect on fathers and the important role they play, whether it be your own father, a grandfather, a father-in-law or the father of your children.
To understand fathers’ roles and importance better, the St. George News team took to the streets to find out everything from the best advice ever received from dads to how to change a diaper daddy-style.
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Video by Samantha Tommer, St. George News
A history of Father’s Day
Father’s Day was born of one woman’s desire to have a holiday that celebrated fathers in a similar fashion to Mother’s Day. Sonora Dodd of Spokane, Washington – who was raised by her father after her mother died in childbirth – first proposed the idea of the holiday in 1909.
According to the website of the Library of Congress, Dodd was listening to a sermon on Mother’s Day and thought about all the things her father had done for her and her family and wanted to celebrate accordingly.
Because her father’s birthday was in June, Dodd wanted the holiday to be held in that month, so the first Father’s Day was organized and celebrated in June 1910 in Spokane, Washington.
Though similar celebrations cropped up around the nation throughout the years, Father’s Day wasn’t officially declared a holiday until 1966.
President Lyndon B. Johnson made the declaration that the third Sunday of June would be a day dedicated to honoring fathers. In 1972, President Richard Nixon made the declaration permanent.
Today, Father’s Day is celebrated across the nation and around the world and serves as a reminder to fathers: “You are important.” Fatherhood is a role that many of the presidents of our nation have called the most important job they will have.
In 1924, before Father’s Day was an official holiday, President Calvin Coolidge made it a national event “to establish more intimate relations between fathers and their children and to impress upon fathers the full measure of their obligations.”
More recently, President Barack Obama has joined in a national fatherhood pledge to raise awareness of the importance of fatherhood and how valuable fathers are in the lives of their children.
Daddy’s best advice
“The best advice I ever received from my dad was this: ‘If you aren’t enough without it, you will never be enough with it,’” Brian Goodwin, of Santa Clara, said. “It doesn’t matter how much money, fame, success or possessions you have; if you aren’t happy with who you are without those things, you won’t be happy with them.”
Other responders echoed that sentiment, saying spending time with their children rather than spending money on them is the most important and best way to be a dad.
Jon-David Kolish, of Las Vegas, recalled his father being very involved, very hands-on, and he especially remembered time spent around the dinner table with family.
Jim Chase, a mass communications instructor at Dixie State University, learned the value of hard work from his father but considers the best advice he ever received from him to be “to love your kids no matter what.”
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