By Angelo Falcone
Journalism Guild Writer
Father’s Day is always the third Sunday of June. It is a day set aside in honor of fathers. Webster’s New World College Dictionary states–among 12 noun definitions—that father is “a person regarded as a male parent; protector.” Among the five transitive verb definitions, to be a father is “to take responsibility for.”
“Asked on the Line” approached men in blue and asked them to tell us of any admirable traits they learned or inherited from their fathers or father-figures.
William Tolbert replied with a poem for William Earl Tolbert Sr., in memory of his father: “With the breath you have given me, I have overcome my fears. I embrace you. You are my father.”
Christopher Scull said, “My father is my superhero. From saving me when I was choking to trying to keep me from hanging out with the wrong crowd, he protected my life. Now that he is old and sick, I want to save him. I will always remember him as my superhero. I love you Dad!”
Dwayne Jones said, “My father taught me to be responsible. He taught me to respect others, and to always be a best friend, the best brother, uncle and father. Thanks, Dad.”
Antwan Williams said that his father always told him, “You are a Williams. You can adapt to anything.” This phrase meant a lot to Antwan. “My father gave me the courage and confidence to face life as it is presented to me. Thank you, Dad,” said Antwan.
Sam Johnson Sr. honored three men. “To my father Christopher J. Johnson, my father figure, Jack Diocesan, and my father-in-law Hans Williams: With my father, it was not always easy growing up in the South, but he loved me in the best way he knew. He taught me how to drive a car and encouraged me to love my mother and siblings unconditionally. My father figure taught me how to be accountable for my actions and how to cry without being embarrassed or ashamed. My father-in-law gave me his daughter’s hand, and I learned to see the beauty in marriage and to behold God’s gift to man.”
Dwight Krizman: “My dad was born in 1914 in Eastern Europe. He immigrated to the United States and became a proud U.S. citizen. He taught me how to live with dignity and honor and to always be myself!”
Matthew Nguyen said that because of his father, he learned to help others when they are in need or in an emergency. “I learned to be like my father, just like when he fought in the Vietnam War.”
Anthony “Habib” Watkins: “The person I have great admiration for is my father Marvin Watkins. He will forever be the greatest man that has ever lived. He taught me to work hard, to be a good provider, and to let my actions have the biggest effect of all.”
