ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, June 16, 1996 TAG: 9606180007
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-18 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: DONNA ALVIS-BANKS
Dads, did they ever tell you you're their heroes?
Well, they sure told us.
We asked our readers to share their "Father Knows Best" stories with us, and kids of all ages introduced us to some very special dads in the New River Valley.
Because Danielle Hix isn't able to write yet, her mother, Debbie, helped with some words of praise for father Doug Hix of Radford:
"Right after I was born, I discovered why my daddy knows best. ... My daddy stayed in the hospital room by my mommy's side, giving her his constant support. I don't think there could be a better example for his young impressionable daughter. I am only 3 years old but I am already destined to grow up and marry someone who adores and respects me because that is what I have been shown."
Brittany Riddle, an 11-year-old from Pilot, didn't need any help expressing her feelings for dad Gary Riddle:
"I discovered that my father knows best because when I feel down, he can always help me back up with just little words like 'I love you,' 'Let's talk about it' or 'Let's go get some ice cream!'"
Two 9-year-olds from Christiansburg - Sheena Thurman and Tyler Griffith - also sent letters about their fathers. Tyler described dad Mike Griffith as "nice, generous, loving, kind, thoughtful, cool and understanding," and he wasn't even hinting for a new bike!
Sheena wrote to say that her father, Timothy Thurman, helped her grow up a little bit - the hard way.
"My father told me to do something but I ran out into the street after a basketball and a car came," she confessed. "He whipped me and told me never to do that again. I hated him then, but later I found out he was right. He just wanted to protect me from danger. If I went to the hospital, he would be heartbroken and I love him dearly."
Barbara McDaniel remembers a "spanking" her father, James Thomas, delivered many years ago. The 38-year-old Radford woman was 13 or 14 at the time. She was attending worship at the Baptist Tabernacle when a friend handed her a note that contained some rather "unholy" language. It was McDaniel, however, who got caught with the evidence.
"She told her father that I was to blame ... when she, indeed, was just trying to keep herself clean," McDaniel recollected. "Her father in turn spoke to my father about it and demanded that my father punish me."
"Well, my father showed me that he did trust me, and rightly so. He took me into the next room and had me pretend to cry as he spanked himself. A couple of weeks later, the truth came out. Although my father passed away in November, I'll never forget how he showed me that father knows best."
Several readers wrote to tell us about the advice their fathers gave them. In some cases, dad's 2-cents worth proved to be worth much, much more.
Trish Akers credits her father, Wayne Akers, with much of her success in life. The 21-year-old remembers his advice each and every time she catches herself saying, "I can't!"
"Dad would say, 'Yes, you can. Do your best and that is all anyone can ask of you,'" Trish explained. "Several times in my life when I didn't do my best, those words reminded me of what I was capable of. It certainly helped me through high school and continues to help me in my career."
Randy Harris of Christiansburg wishes he had taken his father Raymond's advice - no ifs, ands or buts!
"When I was growing up, my father smoked," Harris wrote. "He always told me it was a hard habit to quit. He said, 'If you never start smoking, you'll never have to worry about quitting. Well, he stopped smoking. And I started."
Harris, 27, said he picked up the habit about five years ago and just recently quit.
"Dad was right - if I had never started smoking, I wouldn't have to worry about quitting," he said. "I want to eat all the time! I've probably put on 10 pounds."
Likewise, Donita Price of Christiansburg remembers some weighty advice her father, Don Croy, gave her during the 19 years she spent living at home.
"My father's advice was not the typical advice given to many a child," Price wrote. "Not often can I recall him saying such things as 'Go to school, get good grades and go to college,' or 'Always look your best, set an example.' I think things such as these were taken as common knowledge at my house."
"It was the 'common sense' things that he would drill into my brother's and my head. Not a day went by, not a meal went by that Dad didn't put down his fork, push himself back from the table and stare at me. He would say, 'Donita, if you don't stop eating like that, your butt's going to get as wide as your Aunt Betty's!'"
"Well, guess what?" Price said. "It did. And after 17 years of living away from home, gaining a husband, three daughters and a dog, I've just lost 25 pounds."
"I hate to say it," Price added, "but, yes, father knows best!"
One Christiansburg reader - Donna Wells - wanted to let us know that sometimes grandfathers are the best teachers.
"My grandfather, Earl Collins, was the kindest, most unselfish and giving person I have ever known," Wells wrote. "On many occasions, he would give me a dollar or two for spending money. When I was 15 and got a job, he did many other things for me but stopped giving me dollars. When I asked why, he said, 'You're a working girl now and you can earn your own money.' This was a good lesson for me and I knew he loved me enough to teach me to be independent and responsible."
Several other readers wanted to let us know that their dads are heroes in their eyes, too.
Amber Leigh Harris of Christiansburg said her father, Kevin Muncy, gave her the best gift ever by teaching her right from wrong. Likewise, Stacie Swain's father, Billy Swain, has taught his daughter how to handle bad times and learn from her mistakes.
"All he has to do is look at me and simply say, 'Stacie, we need to have a talk," Swain wrote. "Although it took time for me to see, those talks from my dad taught me more than a simple spanking ever could."
Billy Ray Snead of Christiansburg wrote to say that he appreciates the things he has learned from his father, Saford Snead.
Brandy Croy of Parrott is convinced that father knows best, too. The best thing her father, Kenny Montgomery, ever did for her was play matchmaker. He introduced her to her husband.
"I'm now married with a beautiful baby boy," she wrote. "Because of my father, I'm the happiest woman in the world."
Finally, Blacksburg reader Lisa Williams wrote to say she has two heroes - and they both know best.
"In my case, it is father and mother know best because they are the best to me. ... " Williams wrote of her parents, Bobby and Nancy Williams.
"My mom and dad have not always agreed on decisions made, but they still loved me the same and now that I am a mom, I understand how they must have felt."
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