My Dad’s 70th Birthday Party Slideshow

This is a little slideshow I put together for my Dad’s 70th Birthday party, held a couple weeks ago.  I want to thank my sister for doing the hard work, and assembling all the photos.  A lot of scanning of photos.  I was bummed I missed the party, but I’m confident he’s going to have a lot more.

I was blown away and amazed at some of the photos, especially the ones I hadn’t seen before.  Wow, what a good looking couple my Mom and Dad were.  Very cool.  And my Dad as a kid, was he cute or what?

Getting philosophical for a second, I want to give some major shout-outs to my Dad for who he is and what he’s done, and more so, for what he’s given me.  Some characteristics of my Dad.  Hard-working.  Honest.  Trustworthy.  Friendly.  Life of the party.  Caring.  Giving.  Wise.  This is a man who grew up in tough times, without the guidance of his own father.  My grandfather passed away when my father was very young.  A huge influence to be missed.  But my grandmother did a pretty darn good job (cracking the whip, I’m sure) raising six kids on her own.  My father did what he had to do, in order to provide for and raise five kids of his own.  One thing I always noticed growing up, was that my Dad was always there for everything I did.  He picked me up from soccer practice.  He was at all my games.  He watched my band competitions.  And he was doing the same for my three brothers and one sister.  Every sporting event, every band concert, every picnic.  He was there, he came and watched, he gave us his time.

We didn’t have tons of money growing up, but I never noticed it.  I had brothers and friends to play with and my parents were always interested in what was going on in my life.  When I didn’t score high enough on the SAT’s, guess who was watching over my shoulder as I studied to take it again.  Did my parents push us?  Yes, they did, and I am so thankful for that.  They pushed us in all the right ways, but always allowing us to make our own decisions.  They supported us in all the right ways, while keeping close by should we make bad decisions, which were plenty.  And they still happen, and my Dad is always there to catch me.

One quality I’m happy to have inherited from my Dad is his smile.  Everyone that knows him, likes him.  He is the first guy on the dance floor, the first one to offer you a drink at the party, the first one to offer his chair to you.  He is the life of every party, and all of our friends make us promise that he’ll be there to thrown down.  He’s the guy that volunteers first to help with any project you need a hand on, whether it’s collecting firewood, or helping to build a new press box at the high school stadium.

I’m really happy to share this movie.  As I get a little older, and realize I’m not invincible, the more I learn about how important my childhood years were to who I’ve become.  Time is a rarity in this crazy world we live in.  It might be the most valuable thing you can give to your children.  And my parents always had extra to give.  Thanks Dad.

My Dad’s 70th Birthday from Daniel Dunn on Vimeo.