Editorial
Salute Fathers On Their Day

Father's Day, according to many commonly accepted sources, was first celebrated June 19, 1910 at the behest of Mrs. Sonora Smart Dodd, one of six children reared by her single-parent father, Civil War veteran William Jackson Smart, after her mother died. Unofficial support from such figures as William Jennings Bryan was immediate and widespread. President Woodrow Wilson was personally feted by his family in 1916. President Calvin Coolidge recommended it as a national holiday in 1924. In 1966, President Lyndon Johnson made Father's Day a holiday to be celebrated on the third Sunday of June. The holiday was not officially recognized until 1972, during the presidency of Richard Nixon. Now, of course, it is an accepted part of the calendar.

While Father's Day celebrates fathers and recognizes their importance in their children's lives, too many aspects of American culture do not. Anyone gleaning their knowledge of the American family only from television sitcoms, for example, would conclude that fathers exist only to be hornswoggled, bamboozled and flimflammed by their wives, in-laws, neighbors, and just about anyone and everyone else, and especially their children. Given the general level of intelligence with which these sitcom dads are imbued by their scriptwriter creators, it's a wonder these poor fellows can get through doors and around corners without help. When Father isn't being scorned or ignored, he's treated with the same level of caring and concern once accorded the village idiot-feed him, pat him on the head and don't expect him to exceed his capabilities, which on a good day means he can open an envelope without hurting himself too much.

This attitude is especially unfortunate in light of a growing body of evidence that indicates what the rest of us with even a modicum of common sense have known for years: the kids who achieve most, have the most self-confidence and are best equipped to take on an increasingly complicated and confusing world have grown up in an environment where a father or father figure was part of their daily lives.

The most important man in a little girl's life is her father. It is from him that she learns how to interact with men and what she can- and should- expect from the men who will enter her life as she progresses to adulthood. Little boys grow to manhood defining their maleness by the precept and example of their fathers. Sometimes the father need not be a biological parent at all. We can think of many instances in which a concerned male figure played an important role in a child's growth and development simply by his presence and his willingness to give even a little of his time and attention to a youngster.

By no means do we intend to denigrate all the single mothers who raise happy, well-adjusted, successful children of both sexes, and whose male offspring grow into loving, caring fathers. These women and their children have overcome formidable odds and their achievements deserve to be recognized. It is also a recognized fact that in some cases it is better to come from a broken home than to live in one. But in too many instances, the importance of fathers on their children's well being- physical, emotional, psychological, social- is ignored or glossed over. Too many times, men are treated- or regard themselves- as merely contributing their half of a child's DNA and playing no further part in forming the character and personality of the resultant human being. For most of the last century and a half, for example, an ideal family unit consisted of a father who went to work and a mother who stayed home and raised however many children there were. Father's interaction with family, especially children, was brief and largely admonitory in nature. "My father pushed me in my carriage once and it was enough to mark him an odd one for months," recalled Robert Paul Smith in Where Did You Go? Out. What Did You Do? Nothing., his reminiscences of growing up in the 1920s. We find it inexpressibly sad that a parent could not demonstrate care and concern for his child without incurring some measure of opprobrium.

On this coming Sunday, Americans will celebrate Father's Day 2007. We suggest that along with the ties and aftershave and greeting cards with the drawings of fishing rods and mallard ducks in flight we acknowledge and honor fathers- and the men who sometimes act in their stead- as the formative figures in our lives that they are.

Wherever you are, Dad, Happy Father's Day.