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My parents divorced when I was six. She remarried about a year later. My stepfather raised me, best thing that ever happened to me. He was always there for me, never raised a hand against me, though I knew he was fully capable of kicking my arse. He was also one of the smartest men I ever knew. His advice was invaluable to my growth. I honored him by giving his name to my son. Instead of being the "3rd" (I was a Junior), Francis was my son's middle name.

What about your actual biological father? Did he maintain contact, exercise joint custody, provide emotional and financial support, etc.?

Did he remain in your life?

Regards,

My biological father was a tangential figure in my life. You can blame it on his job, where he could be called to work 24/7 (he worked for the Feds). On a number of occasions, he'd call on a Friday afternoon, saying he was going to pick me up for the weekend (he lived 30 miles away). Before he could pick me up, he was called back to work.

I don't recall him seeing me play any of my sports more than a few times. I never paid much attention to it. Contrast that with my children and grandkids. I was a Lariette Dad, and a Band Dad for 8 years, enjoyed every minute of it. Following my now 14 YO grandson's exploits, it took us to Cooperstown two years ago for a tournament...for a baseball freak like me, it was glorious.

It was a bitter divorce, I never heard whether he was up to date on child support. It wasn't until the day I graduated from Gonzaga that they deigned to take a picture together.

I do know that he was proud of my accomplishments. When I was in Officers Basic at Fort Bliss, he stopped for a few days enroute to DC, where he was transferred. I took him out to dinner at the O'Club, a heady experience for a WWII sailor, dining amongst a number of officers, to include his son.

Due to my upbringing, I vowed to stay married, that no other man was going to raise my children. Come April, that will be 38 years of marriage and fatherhood. I'm no saint, but I married a woman who is a better wife than I deserve.