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The best military dads

For Father’s Day, Military Times and USA WEEKEND asked readers to reveal the commitment of countless military dads to their families, even as they serve thousands of miles away. Thanks to improved technology, dads can now be “with” their kids, no matter where they’re serving. Here are just a few of the submissions we received. Go to www.usaweekend.com for more stories.

Alex Garner

Alex Garner is my son. He has been in the Marine Corp for eight years. He went to Iraq in September 2006. At that time his wife, Stella, was pregnant. After only two months, he was injured and had to be sent home. He underwent shoulder surgery to put anchors in to hold his shoulder together. On Feb. 1, 2007, his son was born. Although his shoulder was in a harness, he was always there for feedings and diaper changes. Nothing would slow him down from being a father. In September 2007, he left again for Iraq to serve until April 2008. His son was only 7 months at the time. He has missed his first steps, first words and the first birthday, but he is dedicated to serving his country. Amazingly, he has been able to see his son a few times on the Web cam and say things to him over the phone. While he has been away, we continue every day to show his son pictures of his dad so he will not forget his face. He will look at them and say, ‘Hey, Dada.’ It breaks my heart to even try to imagine the things that go on in our soldiers’ minds while they are missing out on so much at home. My son is an outstanding Marine, son, husband and father. He is looking forward to reuniting with his son soon. Meanwhile, while he has been in Iraq, there have been many children there who have touched his heart as well. To see these children, as he describes, happy but in such a difficult situation, we all should learn from our military that there are many needs where they are serving, and each of us as parents should be so grateful that we have choices for our children. So many are there with no family — can you imagine how happy they must feel when our loved ones take just even a minute to acknowledge them? Not only is my son a good father to his son, but he always looks out for others, too. Happy Father’s Day to all dads. Cherish your children and what you can bring positive to their lives.

— Debbie Gallimore, Denton, N.C.

Forrest Erickson

Forrest Erickson is my dad. Frosty, as everyone calls him, is the best you could find. He is actually my step-dad, who married my mom when I was 5 and my sister was 10. My biological dad passed away when I was 3 years old. My step-dad took over the role of Dad right away and accepted us as his own. He built us a brand new home and took care of us as any other father would. He never tried to push us to call him “Dad,” it just came naturally to my sister and me. He owned an electrical business for over 20 years and also joined the Navy Seabee Reserves. He has now worked his way up in rank to master chief. He served his first tour of duty in Iraq back in 2006 at the age of 54. His unit was stationed there for seven months, and they asked him if would volunteer to stay over there to help with training some of the new incoming soldiers. He stayed there till 2007. Now he is stationed in California, where he continues to work on base at Port Hueneme. My mom is still back here in Illinois, so we only get to see him every four-to-six months when he gets leave to come home. He enjoys everything he does, and it’s his passion to serve his country. We couldn’t be any prouder of him for his service. We sacrifice our dad/husband/grandpa so he can protect our freedom and yours everyday.

— Marcy Balk, Fulton, Ill.

Ryan Jackson

I nominate Ryan Jackson, a Marine. Ryan and his wife, Rachel, had an adorable baby boy (Kyre) a month before Ryan was sent to Iraq. They kept in constant connection with one another, making videos for one another to keep each other updated on what was going on. A “stuffed” Ryan was even made for Kyre for him to cuddle with at night. I've never known such dedication to a family. Ryan is the prime example of what a wonderful father should be.

— Stephanie Clark, Saint Clair Shores, Mich.

James Phillips

My son, James Phillips, is the best dad I’ve ever known. He has been in the Army for almost 19 years, and he is very proud to serve his country. He has been married to Ericka, my daughter in-law, for 14 years, and they have one son, Makenzie. James is stationed in Iraq, and he still finds time to be involved in Makenzie’s life. He calls them often with questions about his daily life and school details. He wants to know how he’s doing in school and what’s happening in his life while he’s gone. James is always doing things with Makenzie as a father and son. Makenzie wears his hair like his dad and acts just like him. When James is home, Makenzie wants to wear whatever his dad wears from the clothes down to the same shoes. James has taught Makenzie respect for others and to say ‘yes, ma’am’ and ‘yes, sir.’ I could write a book about my son and the great Dad he is. All I can say is besides being a dedicated military man he is also a dedicated father.

— Barbara Jones, Greensburg, Ind.

Ronald Quinn

Army Sgt. Ronald Quinn is serving his third tour in Iraq. He and his wife, Tammy, are parents of two — a 10-year-old daughter, Savannah, and an 8-year-old son, Lawson. Ronald is very active with his family. He is a father who will stand in long lines or swap and trade things to be able to use a phone or Internet to talk to his children. Ronald is so involved in his children’s lives even while in Iraq. No one in the family makes a decision until Ronald calls or Web cams so they can all four talk about it. Ronald helps in making decisions in every way from help with schoolwork, planning fun activities and even discipline. He is able to Web cam, and the children show Christmas, birthday and Easter gifts. They show new toys and outfits. They even show off new talents and songs they learn. Ronald always makes sure he is part of his children’s lives when he leaves. He is such a huge part when he is home that he makes sure that he stays as much a part when he gone. It would mean so much to be able to be with him on Father’s Day, but to be able to let him read how proud they are of their hero, Daddy, would be great. Yes he is a military hero, but he has always and will always be their Daddy Hero first. Ronald is proud to be an Army sergeant, but his biggest pride and award is his wife and children. Ronald and his family never go anywhere without their lap tops and cell phones. He made sure that the children also had cell phones so if they happen not to be with their mom he can call them also. He makes his children very proud to be called ARMY BRATS!

— Doris Hughes, York, S.C.

Douglass Elsass

Navy BU1 Douglas Elsass, my husband, is the greatest military dad. He married into a family with two boys already, 7 and 14. In August 2006, he went on deployment knowing that we would be expecting our first child together while he was gone. We were lucky he was going to be able to come home for the induction, which was scheduled a week before she was due. Well, babies have their own plans, and she came even a week earlier! He experienced the birth of his first child through the phone. He did still come home that next week, but only got to spend five days. He came home from deployment when she was 2 months old. He is now on deployment again, having left in December. But the whole time he’s been gone, he has made sure that he calls. We make sure we are all on the computer talking to him through the Web cam. He has also sent two videos that he has done where he reads stories to the kids. He is doing such a good job for being gone so much. We love him dearly and miss him so much. Words don’t express enough how grateful we are for him and what he does, not only for his country but for his family.

— Adrienne Elsass, San Diego, Calif.

Jarrett Heller

This is our first deployment, and my husband, Jarrett Heller, would tell you that the real heroes, the people with the hardest jobs, are those left behind when Father or Mother leaves to serve. Jarrett has been so incredibly supportive and encouraging to me and my (now) 18-month-old daughter that one would think that we are the ones who are deployed and flying classified missions in the Middle East. Months before he left. Jarrett video-recorded himself reading books to our daughter, Anna, for bedtime. His dedication to us is outstanding, despite his demanding flight schedule, his studies and the two positions/jobs that he holds while in Bahrain. We get to see him about once every two weeks over the Web cam, and it is the BEST invention! He has limited face-to-face time with Anna, but he does not hesitate to kindly but firmly correct her if he notices she is doing something dangerous, such as trying to climb her crib while we are talking. He simply does his best to be in our lives and his attitude is quite selfless. Jarrett is a quiet, kind and compassionate person. He enjoys laughing at the comedic side of life, which he hasn’t seen much of since he left in mid-December. Of course, Christmas wasn’t the same without him. Neither was Valentine’s Day, nor will his birthday be the same, but he says it is a small price to pay for freedom. He considers it an honor to serve. We are thankful that this deployment is a short one, and he is supposed to be back with us in mid-June. Thank goodness because his second child, a son, should be arriving the first week of July! Our ‘story’ is all too common, but what has made this experience livable is that before he deployed, we packed up our belongings and left our friends and Squadron Family in Norfolk, Va., so that I could move in with my parents. Life in a small Pennsylvania town is not untouched by the military. It is very surprising to see the number of families who have children serving from Iraq to the Mediterranean. We are thankful that Jarrett has access to the Internet as much as he does. We are aware that that is not typical for all who are serving. Thank you for giving us a voice to express our appreciation for the men and women serving, and more personally for the love of my life — my chosen person, and best daddy a little girl could hope for.

— Elsa Heller, Bellwood, Pa.

Alex Copland

I am nominating Army Spc. Alex Copland because he has been in Iraq since March 15, 2007, and almost missed the birth of our firstborn. He was able to take emergency leave and be here to see our son be born. He was able to stay for 18 days, and during those 18 days, he took part in as much of taking care of our son as he could. He would get up in the late hours of the night to feed our son. He wanted to bathe our son, change our son, tell our son stories and carry the diaper bag and push the cart around when we would run errands. He was so protective in everything he did, and it made me so happy. When he had to go back, it was very hard for him but we have kept in contact via e-mail, MySpace, Web cam, letters and phone calls. He always asks to talk to our son on the phone, and as soon as Lucas hears his daddy’s voice, he gets the biggest smile on his face. Alex was also able to take R&R in December 2007, which was very special to us. Although he was unable to be here Christmas morning, we had our own family Christmas before he left. Alex would jump to tell everyone about Lucas’s latest milestones — he was so proud of his son’s accomplishments. Since he’s returned to Iraq, all Alex will talk about is when he gets home and the things he and Lucas will do together. He has drawn up plans while in Iraq of the tree house he plans to build for Luke. I send Lucas’ 3, 6, and 9-month pictures to him and some for his brothers and sisters over there because he loves showing his son off. He even shows the locals the pictures of his baby as they all yell and oooh and ahh over our son. I am nominating Alex for his service to our country, meanwhile he is missing his son’s first year, but he stays as up to date as he can and never misses a chance to talk to his boy.

— Ashley Copland, Commerce, Mich.

Dominic Rangel

We want to nominate our son-on-law, Staff Sgt. Dominic Rangel, a career soldier who will be finishing up his second tour of Iraq this month, and we plan to be there for the homecoming ceremony. Dominic and Leslie (our daughter) have a terrific 3-year-old named Tyson (cute as a button and smart as a whip). Tyson misses his dad tremendously and kisses a picture of him over his bed goodnight every night. The first year of Tyson’s life, Dominic was in Iraq, then home for a year and is now finishing up another 15 months. While in Iraq both times he made a DVD about Tyson and Leslie that makes me cry every time I see it. He is always trying new ways to keep Tyson’s image alive while in Iraq. His latest venture is to make composites of the pictures we e-mail to him. When he gets home to Fort Stewart, he will be changing posts of duty and transferring to Fort Benning, primarily because he wants to be home with his family. Evidently, this next three years at Benning means he won’t be deployed for three years. They are hoping to add to their family during this time, and he wants to be a part of the formative years (like walking, laughing, talking, etc.), things he missed with Tyson. Leslie works on post as an Instructional Program Specialist with SKIES Unlimited in Child Youth Services. As well as working full time and caring for a 3-year-old, she is working on her master’s. We are very proud of all three Rangels and know they will have a rich and happy life.

— Sandra Creighton, Boca Raton, Fla.

Charles Houchin

Charles Houchin is my father. I stopped by the cemetery Saturday to clean the headstones of him, my brother, Paul, and our mother, Janice. I have grown up for the last 37 years without him. He lied about his age back in the day to see the world and do the honorable thing — defend his country. He was a 23-year infantry Marine who was in World War II, Korea (wounded and received the Purple Heart) and Vietnam. My siblings and I were able to go to college on the GI Bill thanks to our dad’s sacrifice. I am nominating him because as a middle school teacher and a citizen of the United States, I rarely see a man who did so much for his country and family that he did. Unfortunately, he died too early — only 45 years. I have outlived my father and try in my professional life to give back the dedication and devotion to my students, many who grow up in broken/dysfunctional homes and without dads.

— Mark Andrew Houchin, Indianapolis, Ind.

Jason Lucas

Air Force airman Jason Lucas was involved with his daughter the minute she was born. He took care of her when she was 8 weeks old, when his wife had to go back to work. When he had to leave for Iraq, he made a tape of himself reading to his daughter, Kaleigh, a bedtime story to be played every night. He made arrangements for his wife and daughter so that they were not left alone. Before he left he taught his daughter many things to take with him as memories until he returned.

— Elizabeth Quigley, Trainer, Pa.

Robert Poll

Robert Poll is my youngest brother, of whom I’m very proud. He proudly serves in the Air Force. Not only is he a very giving person, but he is a devoted father to three daughters. It was very hard for him to be away from them for a year. During his deployment, he made sure to set a routine of weekly calls to talk with the girls. He would e-mail photos on a frequent basis to let them see where he was, what he was doing and to let them see he was doing as well as he could. It was tough for him and the girls to be apart at Christmas and their birthdays, yet he made them feel special by using the Internet to order and ship them packages. Because he missed his daughters and felt for the Iraqi children, he took as much time as he could to go to the community buildings set up by the Americans where the Iraqi women and children would go for medical treatment. He would spend time visiting with them and giving out clothes and toys. He even recruited his family to send items that could be given out. Robert has returned home and was reunited with his wife and daughters in September 2007. Again, thanks to technology, today my brother along with many fathers who are serving our country are able to communicate with their families back home.

— Teresa Williams, DeRidder, La.

Eric Carlson

My husband, Eric Carlson, loves his daughter dearly, which is why this sacrifice he was willing to make meant so much. He was deployed during my pregnancy with our daughter, who is almost 2. He got home for his R&R leave three days before she was born. He got to witness her birth. He cherished that and always will. A friend, currently in Iraq with him, wants to be home for the birth of his child at the beginning of May. That is when our daughter’s birthday happens to fall. Eric was training when her first birthday rolled around, so he missed it. He doesn’t want to miss this one. However, he was willing to give up this one, too, so another soon-to-be father could witness the birth of his own child. My husband understood those feelings. He didn’t have to as the higher-ranking soldier, but he felt it was the right thing to do. He is a good dad helping another guy get to be a good dad. I’m proud of that, and I’m sure if my daughter understood, she would be as well. It turns out that he doesn’t have to give up his spot: The other daddy made other arrangements with his wife. He’ll go home for his leave at a different time. It seems that my husband’s willingness to sacrifice his time with his daughter on her birthday is being rewarded. If all goes well, he’ll still get to be here for her second birthday. We can’t wait.

— Stephanie Carlson, North Texas City, Texas

David Mills

David Mills has served his country during two wars. His wife Shelly, my sister, was also in the Navy. David and Shelly were married three years when Shelly became pregnant with their first child. Two weeks later, she was diagnosed with an incurable cancer. She died two days before Father’s Day after a seven-month courageous battle. It was not easy for David having a sick wife and newborn son. With the help of family, David made it through and is raising Tristan on his own. David currently made chief, and with his demanding job, is also a dad, mom, housekeeper and breadwinner. David and Tristan reside in Virginia. The closest family members are seven hours away by car. David is truly doing a great job raising his son. We are so very proud of him. David will continue his career in the military and at some point he will have to leave Tristan for a tour at sea. Please consider David and Tristan for your story. I am certain you will not regret it.

—       Shari L. Hinish, Altonna, Pa.

CALEB PANGBORNT

I am nominating my husband, Caleb Pangbornt. He is an F-16 Crew Chief in the Air Force and is on a deployment to Korea. He was handed orders two months before our first child, Caden, was to be born. Inside of the two weeks he had to prepare for the deployment, my superman-like husband got his wisdom teeth pulled, packed up our entire house so that we could put it on the market, drove up to Rhode Island with the things I would need for our son once he was born (crib, diapers, etc.) along with our two dogs and put our house on the market. Once he got over to Korea, Caleb called every day asking only one thing: “Did you have my son yet?” Finally, the time came and I called him using a calling card to tell him it was time. I also got a chance to talk to him during labor when my mother called him and when my mother-in-law typed to him on Skype while I spoke on the phone with her. Once the baby was born, my father-in-law set up the webcam right in my room. So, even though Caleb was in Korea, he got to see his son the day after he was born. The look on his face was one of pride and overwhelming love. I am nominating my husband Caleb, because he defines “military dad.”

— Erin Pangbornt, Westerly, R.I.

MIKE ZEIDLER

Patient, loving, guiding, humorous, gentle disciplinarian, sensitive, role model, friend, Army. Ranger, Dad. My brother Mike Zeidler is all these and more. His devotion and love to his boys is evident even though he is deployed in Afghanistan. He calls nearly every day, video conferences when able and sends funny things that remind the boys of him. He once told me that when his boys want to spend time with him, there is almost nothing that he would put ahead of that. I often think about that when I am tempted to do housework when my own daughter is wanting to be with me. The deployment is hard on everyone, especially since my brother’s duty station is in Italy. My brother manages to keep a positive outlook on the whole thing, though. Instead of focusing on his time apart from his family, he reminds them of all the fun they’ll have when he gets back. He’s younger than me, but I’ve always looked up to him. I can only hope that the way I see him interact with his boys is evident in my own relationship with my child. Brother, son, husband, Ranger, but without a doubt, his favorite will always be daddy. What’s not to admire about that?

— Dawn George, Florence, S.C.

SHANNON MCBROOM

Shannon McBroom has been serving in the Army for almost 10 years. He is in constant deployment. After getting married he received orders for Korea, and I was 2 months pregnant. He made sure he was there for the delivery of our first son. I know it must have been very hard for him to go back when our son was 2 weeks old. Shannon is always trying to teach our son new things and is always there for him. It brings tears to my eyes to know how lucky my son and I are to have him in our lives. He later was deployed in Iraq when my son was 2. He would always make sure to call and wish him good night even though in the background I could hear bombs going off (I was scared and I was not even there). I know he must have been scared. but he didn’t show it. He tried to be strong for both me and our son. We now have another son. He does everything for him as well. He had to leave for school when our baby was 3 months. He seems to leave when our kids are still babies and comes back when they are older so he misses out on a lot of things. but he makes up for that when he comes home. I am very proud of my husband. I know he has a stressful job. but somehow manages to overcome that. He never lets us see his fears. his worries. He is always there for our sons no matter what. As I am writing this I have tears flowing down my face. Words can not describe how proud I am to have Shannon in my life. And I know our boys have a wonderful father as well as a great male role model.

— Lorena McBroom, Lawton, OK.

DAVID SMITH

There are so many reasons I call my husband, David Smith, a great military dad to his three children that it would fill a book the size of War and Peace. I will begin at the time when I knew that David was totally and completely devoted to being a wonderful, loving father as well as a honorable sailor in the United States Navy. He and I were stationed together in Puerto Rico, thousands of miles away from our families. We fell in love and became pregnant with our first son quickly. We knew little of the challenges that lie ahead for us. David began his navy career as a rebel and didn’t see himself as making it a career. Instead, he believed he was going to serve his four years and return to Los Angeles where his family resides. When life threw us a curveball, we had to make gut-wrenching decisions. If I stayed in the military, there would be no guarantee that we could be stationed together even as a married couple. Would we have to put our small son in the care of family in case we both deployed? All of these things crashed down upon us, and was quite sobering for two young, reckless, immature young people. After much careful consideration, my husband decided to reenlist in the military and I would get out to raise our child. We were married three days before our eldest son, Cameron, was born. Many people doubted that we were ready for this enormous step in life, and family on both sides questioned our judgment. However, the moment David reenlisted for six years, I knew he was giving me and my son the ultimate sacrifice. He wanted to give us a good life, and offer us security. We relocated to San Diego where he went on frequent deployments on various ships. Each time it became harder and harder to watch his little boy wave goodbye as he boarded the giant vessel. Six months later he would return to see a more grown-up version of his son. During his deployments he wrote daily emails to tell us he loved us, and called when he reached a port. Sometimes he called from the ship’s satellite phone that has a 15 second delay. Those calls were always interesting! His homecomings were always fun-filled reunions, and he would bring out the many treats from far away places like Singapore, Thailand, Australia, and Hawaii. He told us sea stories that made us laugh, and showed pictures he had taken along the way. He blossomed into the man I always knew he could be, and became such a wonderful asset to any work environment he entered. His devotion to his job allowed him to get advanced quickly and gave us a better life, as well. When I became pregnant with our second son, I expressed a selfish, but strong desire to go to the east coast to be closer to my family in Pennsylvania. I assumed he would consider Virginia or Florida as a next duty station. He instead shocked me with the decision to recruit in my hometown of Pittsburgh! This job is incredibly difficult and constantly stressful. I couldn’t believe he would even think of it. He knew little of the area and being from California, he was nervous about relating to the teenagers in PA. We bought a home, our first, moved and he took on the job in his usual way: full force. He received numerous awards for the effort she put forth, but I will never be able to thank him enough for the gift he gave me and my children.

— Kate Smith, Greensburg, PA.

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