Father S Day

I was lucky. I had the chance to say goodbye. This will be my second Father's Day without my dad. My father -- the coolest, kindest, smartest, selfless, most sensible man I've ever met -- died on a bitter cold night two Februarys ago. I remember the events of that evening like it happened last week. I'm not going to burden you with the details and the personal events of the night, but after reading a magazine article this week in Men's Health, I thought it was important to share a lesson learned.

A generation of diaper-changing, dinner-cooking daddies are redefining what it means to be a father. Today, Father's Day, the U.S. Census Bureau estimates there are 63 million dads. But today's dads differ from the fathers of decades ago. The new batch of dads want to balance work life with family life; they want to be the parent and provider, recent studies suggest. What the numbers say Generally, dads nationwide are spending more time with their children - an average of 2.7 hours a day, compared with 1.9 hours in 1977, according to surveys by the Families and Work Institute, a nonprofit think tank in New York.

TRI-STATE -- William Groves Jr. said he has been waiting a long time for his first Father's Day. "It has been a complete joy," Groves said of his first 10 months as the father of Zachary Eston Wesley Groves, who was born Aug. 19, 2008. People told Groves, 37, that having a child changes your life. "But I never knew how much," the Harpers Ferry, W.Va., man said. Groves said he and his wife, Lori, had been trying to have a child for a long time. Zachary's entrance into the family was the result of fertility treatments and a lot of hope, Groves said.

'Father's Day' movie review Crystal and Williams: The match is made in heaven, the movie is not Billy Crystal and Robin Williams are such talented, crowd-pleasing comedians that you would expect them to make a movie with an impressive laugh-per-minute ratio. But their first collaborative film effort, the middling "Father's Day," is lucky to elicit several grins and a few mild laughs. It is not the fault of the actors, although both seem remarkably earnest, but rather the fault of the script, by Babaloo Mandel and the Hollywood moguls who approved it. Note to filmmakers: stop adapting French comedies.

You know, they come up, slap you on the shoulder and say, "You're the spittin' image of your dad!" Or do your dad's friends compliment him with "He - or she - sure favors you!" Perhaps someone remarked, "I can see the resemblance," as they browsed through photos of you and your family. Send us a snapshot of you and your dad by Friday, May 23. We'll run a few of the look-alikes in the Sunday, June 15 - Father's Day - Lifestyle section of The Herald-Mail. Be sure to include your name, your dad's name, your ages, your hometowns and your daytime phone numbers.

Washington County Commissioner Jeff Cline sees his father every day, but that doesn't make Father's Day any less special. For Cline, the holiday is another chance to honor his biggest hero. "My father lived the American dream of providing a better life for his children," Cline said. "I couldn't be prouder of him. " Harry "Buck" Cline, 88, served in World War II in the 475th Infantry Division in the Pacific Theater in India, Burma and China. After returning home, he worked two jobs to support his wife and four sons.

From cross country and track to the road-racing circuit, Tim Schuler's life has been a highlight reel of competitive running. Schuler, 41, of Chambersburg, Pa., said two victories stand out from the countless others - the Vermont City Marathon title in 1997 and the PIAA District 3 cross-country crown in 2000. The first, Schuler ran a personal-best and national-class time of 2 hours, 18 minutes to win. The second, his daughter, Kylee, captured with a dramatic come-from-behind kick during her ninth-grade season with the Chambersburg Trojans.

Young people made Father's Day cards at Contemporary School of the Arts & Gallery during an art program taught by Mary Wunderlich. For more information, e-mail starving_artist107@hotmail.com "> starving_artist107@hotmail.com.

John Wysling Age: 9 Pangborn Elementary Dad: Carl Wysling Ambrielle Kolb Age: 1 1/2 Dad: Ralph Kolb Ashley Tyler Age: 10 Pangborn Elementary Dad: Donald Tyler Blaine Mumaw Age: 8 Smithsburg Elementary Dad: Greg Mumaw ...

"Never give up. " That was the advice Nick Patterson's father, Ed, gave the 9-year-old this spring when he was tackling a standardized test in third grade at Paramount Elementary School. Patterson's brothers, Andrew, 7, and Jonathan, 5, said their parents tell them to live by the Golden Rule - to treat others as they want to be treated. To honor thy father this Father's Day, The Herald-Mail asked Tri-State area residents what the best advice was they ever received from good ol' dad and asked dads what advice they would give to their children.