Free Republic

A parent in Dartmouth, N.S. says her child’s school is taking political correctness too far by deciding to eliminate Mother’s Day and Father’s Day celebrations. Astral Drive Elementary School has instead chosen to celebrate the International Day of Families, which takes place each year on May 15, to include non-traditional families. Michelle Allaby says she has no problem with the idea of a family day, but she feels Mother’s Day and Father’s Day shouldn’t be abolished at the school. “They weren’t allowed to make a card or a craft at Mother’s Day,” says Allaby. “So, I asked my friends that...

A Nova Scotia school is causing controversy after deciding to stop celebrating Mother’s Day and Father’s Day, instead opting to recognize the International Day of Families instead. The Dartmouth elementary school said it is aiming to celebrate diversity and inclusivity while avoiding making children who are part of non-traditional families feel left out.

Watertown father admits guilt for smashing up head shop Watertown, NY -- A Watertown man has pleaded guilty to a criminal charge for smashing up a head shop after his adult son overdosed on bath salts from the store. Dan Avery, 49, pleaded guilty Friday in Jefferson County Court to a misdemeanor charge of fourth-degree criminal mischief. He was sentenced to a one-year conditional discharge and ordered to pay $638 in restitution for the damage he did to Tebb's Headshop in Watertown. Avery was charged in July with a felony count of third-degree criminal mischief and criminal possession of a...

When I wake up each morning, chances are it is to the sound of one of my sons. Whether it’s the voice of my 3-year-old or my 4-month-old that breaks my slumber, I find out when I come to. But they’re earlier risers than I am, and more to the point, they live under my roof. Four decades ago, six in seven kids could say the same thing. Today, it’s five in seven. At current trends, when my boys are my age, perhaps half of American children will live with their dads. It won’t be only on Father’s Day when...

"Be a Dad!" by Fr. Larry Richards "Be a Dad!" | Fr. Larry Richards | Adapted and excerpted from Be a Man! Becoming the Man God Created You to Be | Ignatius Insight You are going to die! It doesn't matter how rich we are, or how popular we are, or how powerful we are: we are all going to "kick the bucket" one day. Isn't that a nice thought? What we have to do is take some time to sit and meditate about taking our last breath. What do you want your wife to say about you? What do...

I have two twentysomething daughters who’re currently taking over the planet. When these female charges popped out of their mommy’s womb, this thing called “responsibility for their upbringing” hit me like a Jackie Chan punch. I didn’t slough off my role in their lives onto my wife, my church, public school, day care, relatives, TV, or “the village.” I didn’t expect any of the aforementioned to fill my boots chiefly because … they can’t. Living in Miami, I knew I would have to pony up and become a major player in my little ones’ lives if I wanted them to...

Study: Father's Day Must Be Every Day - Critical For Child's DevelopmentBy Rebecca Matok Israel News AgencyJerusalem, Israel --- June 17, 2012 ... A father's love and presence is as important to a child’s emotional development as a mother’s, a large-scale study has confirmed. Investigating the cases of more than 10,000 sons and daughters revealed how a cold or distant father can damage a child’s life, sometimes for decades to come. The review of 36 studies from around the world concluded that a father's love is at least as important to youngsters as that of their mothers. Researcher Professor Ronald...

Full article here, Happy Father's Day everyone! Everyone has to decide how best to raise his own children, but I would submit one important element missing from what I’ve mentioned so far: In what shape are we leaving our society and our government for our kids to inherit?It is easy not to think about this as being an integral part of parenting, since these areas are not exactly in our control. You might think that since there are so many different opinions about how our government should behave that it is pointless to focus on it and instead trust that...

Oh my dearly beloved, my heart rejoices greatly when I think about my Heavenly Father’s wondrous love towards you and me; sinners saved by His grace and mercy (John 3:16-17, 1 John 3:1-4). To all of us that know God the Father by means of Jesus Christ our Savior, we are called His sons or children (John 1:12, Rom 8:14-19, 1 John 3:1-3)! Such wondrous truths cannot even begin to be fully comprehended by His redeemed ones (1 Cor. 2:9)! It will take all of FOREVER just to begin to experience and enjoy the PERFECT LOVE of our Heavenly Father....

Happy Father's Day!!

"For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that he may grant you in accord with the riches of his glory to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inner self, and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the holy ones what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the...

Filmmaker reveals new evidence Frank Marshall Davis was president's real father NEW YORK – Did Barack Obama’s mother pose nude for communist poet and journalist Frank Marshall Davis? Did Obama build his political career on a fairy tale that his father was a Kenyan who grew up herding goats? Was Obama’s goal in writing his autobiography, “Dreams from My Father,” to misdirect Americans away from a deeply disturbing family background and a Marxist political foundation? These are questions filmmaker Joel Gilbert poses in the full-length documentary “Dreams from My Real Father,” which argues Frank Marshall Davis is the president’s biological...

This Sunday (June 17) will mark the first time that Trayvon Martin's father, will spend Father's Day without his son. In a new PSA, released to the ‘Net Tuesday (June 12), Tracy Martin, spoke out against gun violence, after expressing the joys of fatherhood. “Becoming a father is a special gift, it's a miracle of love,” he said in the video. “It's a miracle of love and an everyday reminder that life can be beautiful.” Martin's life was changed forever, the night that George Zimmerman took his son's life. “This Father's Day will be the first without my son, Trayvon....

The latest campaign email to supporters of President Barack Obama's reelection effort tries to capitalize on the president's coolness. "From coaching basketball to knowing how many Jonas brothers there are, Barack is a pretty cool dad," writes First Lady Michelle Obama in an email to supporters. Michelle Obama adds, "But more importantly, Barack is a wonderful father and partner. ... The email goes on to encourage folks to virtually sign an e-card wishing the president a happy Father's Day. After signing the card, supporters are immediately directed to a page that then asks the president's supporters to donate money to...

A Texas father beat a man to death after catching him molesting his four-year-old daughter in a horse barn, The Houston Chronicle reports. The incident happened Saturday evening near Shiner, Texas. Lavaca County Sheriff Micah Harmon identified the victim as a 47-year-old man from Gonzales, Texas. He was reported dead at the scene, however, his name will not be released until his next of kin is notified

Looks like JCPenney is sticking it to those who slammed Ellen DeGeneres' hiring as its spokeswoman. The company's new Father's Day ad shows two "real-life" dads playing with their two actual kids, JCPenney says. "First Pals: What makes Dad so cool?" the ad's copy asks, according to blogger Joe. My. God. "He's the swim coach, tent maker, best friend, bike fixer and hug giver—all rolled into one. Or two." The ad, Gawker notes, follows the American Family Association's One Million Moms' attempt to launch a boycott over DeGeneres' hiring earlier this year.

In its June book, J.C. Penney Co Inc. ran an ad featuring another same-sex couple, but this time it features two dads in honor of Father’s Day.

Priests of the Domestic Church: A Father's Day Homily | Deacon Harold Burke-Sivers | Ignatius Insight In the days before global positioning systems, Mapquest, and Google Earth, men were stereotyped as reluctant to ask for directions. You know the scene: a couple is driving somewhere and, unable to find their destination, the wife turns to her husband and says, "Honey, maybe we should stop and ask for directions." The husband, dismayed that his wife would dare challenge his sense of direction, stubbornly says, "I know where I'm going!" This would go on and on until they eventually found the...

A Prayer for Fathers Most gracious Heavenly Father,We thank you for our earthly fathers, those to whom you have entrusted the responsibility to provide loving protection of their families and guidance of their children. We thank you, also, for our priests and bishops, whose spiritual fatherhood is so vital to the faith of your people.May our earthly fathers imitate the manly courage of Abraham, Jesse and Joseph, and all the holy fathers of the past in providing wise counsel to the children you have given to their care. And may our spiritual fathers be guided by the examples of Saints...

“Todd is a good dad”. Governor Sarah Palin said these words often on the 2008 presidential campaign trail when introducing her four- time Iron Dog champion husband, Todd Mitchell Palin, to cheering audiences. The First Dude, as she affectionately calls him, is deeply committed to his marriage, is fiercely protective of his children, and constantly shows patriotic allegiance not only to his native Alaska, but to America. Never slothful or lazy, Todd is always by his wife’s side and works hard to provide for his family whether it be on a Bristol Bay salmon run or in the oil fields...