Residents’ Favorite Memories With Their Dads
Consumer spending may total over $22 billion on this year’s Father’s Day. The National Retail Federation says 75% of Americans plan to celebrate the June holiday, and the most common dad gifts are cards, clothing, and special outings.
Father’s Day is coming quickly...
... and residents at Gabriel Homes have plans for family visits and brunches. In the May edition of our newsletter, we spoke with some of our residents’ moms about family traditions. But not all residents’ parents are with us today. This Father’s Day, residents shared their favorite memories with their dads so family legacies could live on.
“I come from an army dad who served for eight years. He was active during World War II and the Korean War. When I was little, Dad showed us our grandparents’ home in Pennsylvania. We walked his path to school, and he showed me where he graduated. I met some of his childhood neighbors. His friends said he was funny back then like he was with me. Dad’s sense of humor was teasing, but I messed with him, too. We had fun being silly together.”
“Dad worked with satellites and planes, and he knew lots about stars and constellations. He also got me into history. We would go on the computer, and he would read me the history of world events. African history was the most interesting to me since everyone has ancestry from there. When he wasn’t working, he volunteered at Wolf Trap. I always loved the free tickets his shows got us.”
“When I lived in New York, Dad and I did the same trip to work together. We carpooled with his buddies, got doughnuts at the deli, and went to work on the same route. On family trips, we drove from New York to Atlanta to pick up my uncle, and we headed down to Florida. We either stayed at Sarasota’s beaches or Disney World in Orlando.
“On the anniversary of my dad’s death, I go to church and light a candle for him. He’s not here anymore, but he knows I love him.”
“Dad and I played lots of games. He taught me how to use my forehand and backhand in tennis and signed me up for tennis camp. Football was on every Sunday in the fall when we were home, and I liked watching the games with him. Trips with Dad to Rehoboth Beach were the best, though. We walked through Funland on the boardwalk, where we played our favorite game, Skee-ball.”
“I was in the backyard all the time when I was little because the swing set was so much fun. Dad was a strong pusher when I was on it. When it was hot outside, Dad was our grill–master. He knew how to grill steaks, and I liked mine well done. The Nationals were always playing in the spring and summer on our TV, so he got me into baseball. If the Nats weren’t playing, we were throwing the baseball in the backyard.”
“My dad was such a great man. We played lots of football, but we were bad! Neither of us could catch or throw the ball, but at least we could hang onto it. Dad was great on the grill, though. Whenever he dropped the meat, he yelled, ‘God dang it!’ in a funny voice. I always laughed because he looked silly when he yelled. We joked about his meat drops every cookout.”
