As I write this, it’s about a week following Mother’s Day, and I’m now looking ahead to Father’s Day. Talk about a difference in build up!
Mother’s Day is all about planning a special day or weekend. It’s about letting Mom (wife) sleep in or making her breakfast. In the weeks leading up to the day, advertisements appear everywhere to make sure dads (husbands) don’t mess things up — as we’re wont to do. And don’t forget about the cards. As the character Newman in a Seinfeld episode pointed out, Mother’s Day is “the mother of all mail days.”
Father’s Day is about … what? Dads do get a little shortchanged when it comes to the hype and spectacle surrounding the two parental holidays. Of course, dads, we have only ourselves to blame for the most part, especially given the history of Father’s Day. You can read a little about it in “The List.”
As someone who will be celebrating his seventh Father’s Day as a dad, the holiday serves as a reminder of the joys fatherhood has brought me. I reread the “Letter” I wrote for this space a month after my first son was born in 2009. I described what I had learned a month into being a dad. Safe to say, I’m still learning things — like I have to be extra careful with things I say around the house, lest they get repeated or misunderstood! The job of being a parent is a job where you never stop learning and you enjoy those special moments with your kids each day — whether it’s a holiday or not.
And speaking of feeling special, Town&Gown received a couple of awards/honors in May. At the Borough of State College’s ABC (Authorities, Boards, and Commissions) Appreciation Dinner, the magazine was honored to receive the Arnold Addison Award, which is given to an individual or group that has promoted the quality of life in the community through town- gown relations.
Also, Town&Gown earned a Silver Bracket Award for Editorial/ Publication Design for creative director Tiara Snare’s opening design for the story, “Bringing a Hero Home” (April 2015). The Bracket Awards, a competition awarding excellence
in advertising, design, and marketing created in Central Pennsylvania, are presented by [CP]2, Central Pennsylvania Creative Professionals. The organization is doing an outstanding job in promoting and bringing together the creative talent that is here in Happy Valley!
The honors are not only about the staff at Town&Gown, which works hard to put out a high-quality magazine each month, but also about all of Happy Valley since it’s you who are doing the wonderful work in the region and allow us to share your stories with everyone, and also the businesses and organizations who advertise in the magazine and are the reason why it has been free for more than 50 years now! So thank you Happy Valley!
