Thanks Dad!

Thanks Dad!

I was privileged on Memorial Day to participate in the dedication of a beautiful new memorial on Creek Street to honor Robert Topham, the only son of Wrentham who died on the battlefield during the Vietnam War. The monument stands directly across the street from the house where Bobby lived during the years of his youth prior to his enlistment in the United States Marine Corps immediately following graduation from King Philip Regional High School. He was also a son of Saint Mary’s Parish as he was baptized here, received his First Holy Communion and Sacrament of Confirmation here. His flag-draped casket was carried into Saint Mary’s Church for his Funeral Mass on March 5, 1969, followed by full military honors as he was laid to final rest in Wrentham Center Cemetery. Bobby Topham was only twenty years old when he offered his life for his country. He sacrificed the opportunity to hopefully return home to Wrentham to fall in love and establish his own home and family.

My father fought in World War II in the South Pacific as part of the American Division of the United States Army. He fought in New Guinea and the Philippines when he was in his early twenties, half a world away from his family in South Boston and not knowing if he would ever see his family again. I was fortunate that my Dad did return home safely from his military service to fall in love with my Mom and to later welcome three sons and two daughters into their love. My father never talked very much about his war experience. It was only after his death when we found his boxed medals tucked away in his overseas chest that we learned that he had been wounded in action and highly decorated for his service. It was obviously something that he wanted to put behind him so that he could focus on building a life with my Mom and his five children. He never thought that he would ever get out from under the burden of that $6,000 mortgage for our first home in the Oak Hill section of Newton. He never talked that much about any of the sacrifices that he made routinely for his family. He deferred his dream to study engineering at the University of Notre Dame. He settled for long years of night classes at Bentley College and Northeastern University while he worked all day and just wanted to get home to his wife and kids at night. He did it for us; so that we could enjoy some of the opportunities that eluded him because of a global war and a growing family.

Most of us don't know even a portion of the sacrifices that our fathers made for us to give us opportunities and blessings that we too often take for granted. Father’s Day is a good opportunity to say 'Thanks Dad' even if our fathers are now watching over us from Heaven.

It has often been noted that it is very difficult to come to an appreciation of the love of God the Father if we haven't known the blessing of a loving father in our own lives. A good father allows us to grow up in the security that he will provide for our needs and protect us from any danger. If you have a secure, confident relationship with God the Father today, it is likely that it is rooted in a loving relationship with your Dad. Jesus called God the Father 'Abba' which we would translate as “Dad.”

Anyone can be a father, but it takes someone very special to be a Dad!

Thanks, Dad!