Fathers: Life’s lessons from Dad
Published: June 19, 2005
Readers write to share the impacts their fathers had on their lives.
He has many names Dad, Daddy, Daddy-o, Pops and Papa and lots of titles on his resume.
He’s the breadwinner, a war veteran, Mr. Mom, your best friend, a disciplinarian, a golfer with a killer swing, nature’s advocate and the family comedian.
This month, the Press-Telegram asked readers to share their fathers’ best life lessons, and each story expanded on the definition of fatherhood.
“My dad, in his quiet way, taught me the importance of family,” wrote Lakewood resident Cyndee Monts , of her father, Carl Geary .
Cyndee’s childhood was filled with camping trips and visits to national parks. Weekends spent at the beach and the river taught the importance of taking time “to relax and enjoy life and family.”
“Family is just that, Family!” Cyndee continued. “You can live, love, laugh and cry with family. They are always there for you.”
Her son, John Thomas Monts, shared his own thoughts on his father, John Allen Monts.
“My dad is the man that sacrifices his weekend to earn extra money so I can live a healthy and fun life,” said John Thomas, 17. The Teran family of Bellflower learned the “Big Four’ from dad: family, fun, food and friends.”
In a poem, East Long Beach resident Jane Lovett said of her father, John Murray :
“He and my mom worked tirelessly it was never a chore
“My dad told me too that hard work will always pay off if you are true to yourself, and that while money helps things along, your family is your wealth.”
J. “Pepe’ Esguerra of North Long Beach recalled his father’s work ethic, which enabled him to raise and provide for 10 children in the Philippines.
Identifying his “parental guidance and household discipline’ as his father’s greatest legacy, Pepe described a man who worked as a steward for the U.S. Navy around 1910.
“His training and experience in the naval career equipped him to nurture, in partnership with Mom, a big brood of 10 offspring with eight girls and two boys, of which I was the oldest.”
His father built the family home from wood with bamboo flooring and nipa palm roofing, tended a fruit orchard and raised a small staple of seasonal crops, including corn, eggplants, mustards and sugar cane.
The family was unable to afford medical school, Pepe’s original calling. Taking his father’s advice, Esguerra joined the Manila Police Service, where he led a distinguished career as a lieutenant colonel.
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Long Beach Park Estates resident Carmen Oloriz Authier said her father, Joe Oloriz, brought his family to the United States in the 1960s. The Filipino immigrant “financially struggled, but yet succeeded to move his family to another country so we can live a richer life,” Carmen wrote.
Adjusting to a new country can be rough. When Graciela Huatuco immigrated to California from Zacatecas, Mexico, in December 1962, her father, Jesus Gurrola, helped her transition to the urban landscape.
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