I am one of eleven children and each of us think our dad is the best… but from my viewpoint I would like to state why I think I have the greatest dad.

I believe that my father’s general rule of thumb is ‘At every moment, do what you can.’ His living by this rule has taught me some very important lessons in life to live by:

Know people’s names! I asked why he keeps the notebooks he has filled with the names of people he has met at church, at his children’s school, and within the community. He replied, “It makes people feel good when you know their names.” Names are important. They are part of our identity. To me he is saying to every person he meets, “Who you are is important to me.” That does make a person feel good.

He is a farmer. When you walk on his ranch you get the feeling that you are walking on holy ground. I believe it is holy ground. He has spent the past (fifty-three) years hoeing the weeds, tending the soil and while so doing, I know he was praying – praying for the leaders of our nation, for peace in the world, for us, his children. His concern for the land goes beyond his ranch. His community is important. Every week one can see him down at the Sespe River cleaning out the trashcans he leaves for people to use. Or you may see him walking down Grand Avenue, his grandkids in tow, picking up litter. My dad is a lover of the land. A lover of his community.

Don’t complain about the daily grind. Just get it done and then go play. When over half of his land was burned in the Grand Fire, all he said was, “Guess I’ll have a lot of bare land to plant on this year.” No Complaints. He just started going about cleaning up the debris and checking out what was salvageable.

Be committed! My father married my mother (63) years ago. I’m grateful that he is married to the value of marriage…I’m sure that that commitment is what has kept them together through difficult times. Seeing this in him has taught me that commitment can pull you through a lot. The tough times in marriage, at work, in friendships, will pass if you keep working at it.

Read! Education is important to my father. As children we were always being read to; as adults we are still being given books to read. Of his eleven children, seven of us have worked, or are working in the field of education.

Many of my favorite memories come from time spent sitting around the kitchen table listening to my dad talk to whoever happened to drop in for coffee, or for lunch…or for a couple of years for that matter. My father makes whoever is in the house feel that it is their home too. And, very often it became home to people, in fact whole families, from all over. Growing up, our home was shared with people from other parts of the US, and from Vietnam, Mexico, Ireland and England.

All that he gave me has shaped me to be the wife, mother, counselor, and Catholic woman that I am today. When I look at my children and try to imagine them as adults, what I hope to see is a couple of people who are happy, faithful to God, and committed to life, truth, and caring for others. I guess I can only really hope to see these values in my children by living them myself, the way my father does for me…still today.