Aftershave and Sweet Tarts: Kid's Write About Their Dads

The National Center For Fathering recently asked grade school kids what their fathers mean to them. The quotes are often humorous and sometimes touching. Special thanks to Lucy Bloom for passing it on to us.

Father of the Year Quotes 2008

Easton, 2nd Grade
“He burps, but he is a gentleman, so he says, ‘Excuse Me’ (most of the time).”

Indiana, 3rd Grade
“We pretty much always have vegetables for dinner just for him and my mom.”

Quintin, 3rd Grade
“My dad makes everybody laugh. Every morning and every night he does something funny for 3 min.”

Claire, Grade: unknown
“When my mother isn’t home, he manages ‘the ship.’”

Tashayna, 3rd Grade
“My father is the person that cures the sadness in me.”

Makayla, 3rd Grade
“He will always be stuck in my heart even when I get mad at him for things. I think that he is sweeter then SWEET TARTS!”

Luke, 3rd Grade
There is my dad, no can not buy him even if you bid $999,999,999.01!”

Zach, 3rd Grade
“But he gets kinda mad about other things and sends us to our room. He only does that to show us a little discipline. It’ll be useful in the future.”

Ena, 3rd Grade
“He means the world to me if he died, I would cry a waterfall and name it Arthur!”

Jade, 1st Grade
“He doesn’t yell at me when I get on his nerves. He tells me nicely.”

Sadie, 1st Grade
“He fixes everything. He even fixes my brother’s attitude.”

Casey, 5th Grade
“I love him to the moon and back 500 million times!”





Rachel, 5th Grade
“When my dad comes in to give me a hug at night he and I do something special. He whispers in my ear, “Your God’s best.”


Sarah, 6th Grade
“If there is someone I look up to a lot, it’s my father. I look up to him because he is the only person that I will ever be able to call my dad. Other reasons are simply that I need him in order to grow up. Without him I’m almost nothing. He is a very special person that I hope never, ever gets taken away. I simply cannot imagine life on earth without him, even though we might not always get along. So, I thank my dad for always being there to talk to and to comfort me and I thank God for giving me the greatest dad that ever lived!”


Josie, 3rd Grade
“Dad quit his job because he thought that he didn’t get to spend enough time with Mom, my brother and I. Now he has a job where he gets to spend a lot more time with us. Sometimes he even leaves notes before he goes to work.”

Mai See, 3rd Grade
“I love the way my dad loves my family.”

Molly, 3rd Grade
“I love my dad to the moon and back one million times.”

Rebecca, 5th Grade
“I miss him so much I put his aftershave on my pillow.”

Grace, 5th Grade
“He’s the only person I know (besides my teacher) who doesn’t hate fractions!”
“Most important character in my life, helping everyone and loving me! Always loving, always likable, and to everyone nice, devoted, encouraging, very awesome, unique, large and totally perfect.”

Lexi, 5th Grade
“If I’m sad or something sad happens, he will always comfort me, tell me it’s okay, or that things will always get better. If I need him, he will always be there for me, to give me his love and care.”
“I want to be like my dad in so many ways except for his bald head and mustache.”

Dallas and Javier - A Year Later

I couldn't resist posting this recent still of dad subject Dallas Hayes and his son, Javier. Dallas' wife took the picture while they were all vacationing and it's great to see how much Javier has matured since I filmed him and his dad last year. To learn a little more about Dallas, go here.

New Clip! Fatherhood as Salvation

Sometimes the process of making this film is like a magnet for all things dad. Such is the case with finding Ralph Benitez, a Bronx native, who I happened to come across while on a camping trip at Harriman State Park a few weeks back.

We happened to be washing dishes together at a public sink near our campsites when Ralph spoke of how fatherhood had saved his life. There's so much more to Ralph and his amazing family and filming continues; but here is a brief sampling of what this special dad has to say about first becoming a father. I hope it touches you as deeply as it did me.