Jun 13 Favorite Father’s Day Memories
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He taught you how the world works. They kept you safe from harm’s way. She encouraged you to follow your dreams. Every year on Father’s Day, we’re given the opportunity to demonstrate how much our father – or other significant influence – means to us.
It doesn’t matter if you grew up with a father, two fathers, a step-father, a foster father, a grandfather, or no father. There are special people in our lives who helped shaped us into the people we are today. Father’s Day isn’t just about celebrating those who are biologically related to us. It’s about celebrating love and the people who encourage us to be better.
In honor of this upcoming holiday, we talked to different people to find out what some of their favorite Father’s Day memories were.
In Training
“My dad has always been a big model train collector. In our basement, he had a huge train display, complete with a miniature town that looked very similar to the town we grew up in. One year for Father’s Day, my siblings and I created a miniature version of our childhood home, along with miniature versions of our family. We set everything up in the basement, picked out a fun Hallmark Father’s Day card, and simply wrote in the card “go downstairs.” He was puzzled at first but upon seeing the miniature version of our home and our family, he teared up! It was a Father’s Day none of us will ever forget.” 
Surprise Trip
“My step-dad has always had a huge love for the beach. He grew up in California, and even though he now lives in Arizona, he has pictures of the beach all over his office. He talks often about wanting to move back to California when he retires. For Father’s Day about twenty years ago, we decided to surprise him with a quick weekend trip to Santa Cruz, California. It was the happiest I’d ever seen him. In fact, he loved it so much, that every Father’s Day, the whole family makes a pilgrimage to Santa Cruz to spend the weekend at the beach. It’s been twenty years, and we haven’t missed a year yet.”
Breakfast of Champions
“There isn’t a bigger Kurt Vonnegut fan than my father. He has read everything Vonnegut ever wrote. On my parents’ second date, my mother gave my father a signed copy of Breakfast of Champions, which quickly became his most cherished possession. However, my parents’ basement flooded in the late 90s, and they lost many cherished items, including that signed copy of the book. My father was devastated at the time. About fifteen years ago, I learned that Kurt Vonnegut would be at a symposium. I approached him and asked him to sign a copy of Breakfast of Champions and to make it out to my father. I wrapped up the book, along with a great Father’s Day card (Hallmark at Walgreens always has great ones), and gave it to my father. When he opened it, he immediately gave me the biggest hug I’d ever received.”
Just Made It!
“My favorite Father’s Day memory is actually of my husband’s first Father’s Day. We had been trying to have a family for years and we finally decided to adopt. Our beautiful daughter was born just in time for Father’s Day. The smile on my husband’s face in the photos we have from that day is priceless. He was finally a father – and we were finally a family!”
Image from: http://www.faithanddoubt.com/tough-questions/the-good-life
Keeping it Together
“My dad died when I was 7-years-old. My mom did an amazing job raising three rowdy boys on her own. Last year while cleaning out mom’s garage, I noticed there was a box full of all the Father’s Day cards, notes, drawings and photos we had given to my mom over the years. Giving her a Father’s Day card was a tradition we started decades ago, as she had been both a mom and a dad to us. We had a Walgreens right around the corner so we could buy them without her knowing. I secretly took the box home and had the cards and photos made into a professional looking keepsake book. When I gave the book to her on Father’s Day, she burst into tears. We then spent the next several hours reliving all those Father’s Days that had gone before.”
We’re looking forward to creating lots of new memories this Father’s Day. No matter how you celebrate or who you celebrate it with, the Stream22 team wishes you a very happy Father’s Day this year!