Good morning and Happy Father’s Day to all the dads out there......

Being a dad is a very special thing. Anyone can be a father, but it takes real man to be a dad. While there is no such thing as a perfect dad, there are many things that I feel are the qualities of a good dad.

Setting a good example for them in life is very important, spending quality time with them, being open minded with them, accepting them for who they are. Letting them be individuals is also very important. Supporting them and be loyal to them. And to me the most important is showing them unconditional love. There are many other qualities but to me these are the most important ones.

Now I’m going to share with you some things about my dad.

My dad was a hard worker, he was a district manager and commuted daily to New York, Connecticut and all over New Jersey as well. He was a good provider and some how managed to be at pretty much all of my sporting events. He would take me out when I was younger and practice with me and teach and show things to improve my game. Which was probably why I excelled at them.

We always took a family vacation growing up., and went to numerous destinations. From Niagra Falls to Florida, and everywhere in between. Growing up a RedSox fan we also made numerous trips up to see games at Fenway Park. My dad is a HUGE baseball fan. He actually saw Jackie Robinson’s first major league game.

In October of 1998 my father was diagnosed with throat cancer. He wasn’t a smoker and the doctors couldn’t understand why he got it. But it was a very aggressive form. On Halloween of that year he was diagnosed with 17 points of cancer in his lymph nodes. They scheduled surgery for November 21st. Which was three days before Thanksgiving. By the time they did the surgery it had spread to 46 points from his neck all the way to his right shoulder. The surgery was done by one of the best cancer doctors in the country at Mount Sinai hospital in New York City.

My father is a fighter, and I will never forget his words right before he went into to surgery. He said ”I’m not missing my first grandchild grow up, I’m beating this”. My wife had just given birth to our daughter that May.

The doctor said that he got it all, but my dad would have to undergo extensive radiation and chemotherapy to ensure it was gone. After many weeks and countless sessions he was given a clean bill of health.

He went several years, then cancer showed up again a melanoma in his eye. They got that out with loss of his vision some how. Then two years later he was diagnosed with prostate cancer. Because of his age, they opted not to do the surgery and instead insert radioactive seeds instead. All went well with that as well.

Since then, which is now nearly twelve years he has been cancer free.

My dad will turn 80 years old on September first of this year. Which to me means a lot, he is a very strong willed man and I am very proud to call him my dad.

Now enough with the bad stuff...

For my dads 75th birthday, I surprised him with a gift. My dad growing up in New Jersey and being a huge baseball fan was a New York Giant fan. Yes for you youngsters the Giants used to play in New York and so did the Dodgers they played in Brooklyn. The surprise was a trip to San Fransisco to see a game against their rival Dodgers.

He never knew what was going on even when he opened the box. See I put the envelope with the tickets inside a Giants t-shirt. When he opened it he was totally speechless.

I had already been out to San Fransisco and had also been to a game there. AT&T Park is a great place to see a game. We spent five days there, and hit all the spots including Alcatraz, Sausalito, Fisherman’s Wharf, the Golden Gate Bridge. Oh and I also got tickets to an Iakland Raiders game since the season had started already.

I contacted the San Fransisco Giants prior to us going there for the game and explained why we were coming there. There promotions managers was kick ass to say the least. They sent a care package to me for my father that was amazing. It had a bronze statue of Willie Mays in it just like the one at the stadium, a Championship ball and ring. They had won the Wirkd Series the prior year. All sorts of apparel and passes to the Giants Club for the day if the game. The Giants Club is only available to special season ticket holders. It’s like a Giants museum. My day was so excited.



Dad and me in Sausalito

Dad at Alcatraz

Golden Gate Bridge

Raiders game

I’m glad that we got to spend that time together. It was a once in a lifetime trip. Since then my dad has had a few other health issues. Two TIA strokes and he also had two stints put in and is now unable to fly.

I joke around with him sometimes and call him the cat with nine lives. He’s used up seven of them I tell him, he better be careful now.

All and All he still gets around well. He walks daily between a mile to two miles and is very active.

I am proud to call him my dad.

Happy Father’s Day