CJ'ers Celebrate Father's Day 2021

Father's Day 2021 is this Sunday, June 20th. To celebrate, we asked CJ'ers across the globe to share stories and sentiments about their father figures and fatherhood experiences.

Shelby Petrie, Client Partnerships Manager, Westborough, MA

Tell us about your dad: My dad is an underdog. He's the kind of person that doesn't say much, but when he does, he's funny without even trying to be. He's patient and hardworking. He puts our family first every day, waiting until late at night, when the rest of us have gone to sleep, to invest in himself by exercising or getting lost in music. My dad is a rock star.

Share your favorite funny or interesting dad-moments: It was IMPOSSIBLE for me to pick just one, so I've decided to list out a few:

• My dad likes to put the heated passenger seat on in the middle of the summer and wait to see if the person notices.
• My dad will send me and my siblings YouTube videos of live music performances at 3am.
• My dad sends about 20 pictures a day of our three dogs in our family group text because they truly are a man's best friend.
• My dad plays guitar in a band and you can always tell how intently he's focusing on his playing because he refuses to let loose.
• My dad has a CD collection so large, it overflows into the garage.
• My dad used to rake the leaves in our backyard onto a bed sheet that my brother and I would then sit on and he would drag us across the backyard while we swam in a pile of leaves.
• My dad will do anything to ensure our family is happy and together.

Taylor Cordell, Client Partnerships Manager, Atlanta, GA

Tell us about your dad: Mike is a hardworking, loving, and all-around amazing dad, husband, and Papa. He has the best heart and intentions of any person I know. When we have hydrangeas in bloom, he picks them from the yard and puts one on my desk since he knows I love flowers! He's set the bar high for my sister and me for the type of people we want to surround ourselves with in life. My favorite quote he taught me at a young age is "It's not about where you are at, it’s about where you are going". He is truly one of a kind!

Share your favorite funny or interesting dad-moments: A fun fact about my dad is that he DJs weddings, school dances, parties, etc. He has always loved music and a good time! When I had cabin fever during the pandemic, he set up his DJ equipment in my room to make it feel like I was going out on the town!

How are you celebrating Father's Day this year? Hopefully on the lake! He has been renovating a boat to take out this summer.😊

Chaitra Raghavendra Rao, Associate Client Services Analyst, Bangalore, India

Tell us about your dad in a brief paragraph: My dad has always updated himself to the current generation. Though he appeared to be strict, he was fun-loving. I couldn't spend more time during my childhood days as he was out on business trips. Even at an elderly age he accepted his shortcomings and wanted to have community peace. I love him and I miss him a lot.

How are you celebrating Father's Day this year? I would recollect on most amazing time spent with him.

Ed Gaier, Lead Client Integration Engineer, Westborough, MA

Share your favorite funny or interesting dad-moments: My toddler loves sneaking out of his room at bedtime, so I created a fictional character called the Nap Monster that will eat underwear if he leaves his room. After a lot of questions from said toddler, we established that the Nap Monster lives in a house in the woods far away, but not too far away, that he's shy around kids, so he won't come if you're in your room, and no, he doesn't eat normal food, just underpants. My son still leaves his room.

Deanna Leganski, Sr. Client Development Manager, Chicago, IL

Tell us about your dad: My dad is great at everything! He's an incredibly successful accountant while still being the most creative person I know. He inspires me to constantly try new things: skydiving, different types of food/cooking, traveling, bungee jumping, kayaking, white water rafting, hiking, camping, go-karting, the list goes on!

Share your favorite funny or interesting dad-moments: My dad and I spent a week in Thailand building houses with Habitat for Humanity—those days are some of my BEST memories together! On top of learning how to work together on the house, we also ate all kinds of new food, used our bargaining skills on souvenirs, stuck our feet into baskets of those fish that eat dead skin, rode elephants, pet tigers, and the cherry on top was that he ordered chicken fingers from room service every day while I got ready for night festivities.

Alexis Martin, HR & Talent Acquisition Coordinator, Santa Barbara, CA

Tell us about your dad: My dad is my grandpa and my #1 fan! Lucky for me, he retired from the fire service when I was young, so we got to spend a lot of time together. Don’t tell the other grandkids, but I’m definitely his favorite! 😊

Share your favorite funny or interesting dad-moments: Some of my favorite funny moments with my Papa have to be jumping on the trampoline. When I was a kid, he used to double bounce me until it felt like I was in the sky. We would spend hours playing on the trampoline and laughing!

Liane Soto, Client Partnerships Associate, Chicago, IL

Tell us about your dad: My dad is one of the most hardworking men I have ever met in my life. I'm the spitting image of my mother, but he'll tell you that I'm all him when it comes to the brains. Although not 100% true, there's definitely truth to that statement. I get my love of marketing and business from him. Plus, he taught me the value of a strong handshake. Business aside, he's caring, protective, and quite the jokester. Never a dull moment with him around.

Share your favorite funny or interesting dad-moments: One thing dad and I love to do is discuss marketing possibilities. We analyze commercials, talk about the potential market value of innovating a product in a certain way, discuss business models and target markets or even potential marketing campaigns for products. It might sound like work, but to us it's fun.

Nicole Ron, VP, Global Marketing, Product Marketing & Business Systems, Santa Barbara, CA

Tell us about your dad: I have been fortunate to have many amazing people in my life fill the role of my father but the two people who really embody the role are my mom and my grandpa. As a single parent, my mom had the job of two parents and she enriched my life through incredible experiences—from supporting my dream to attend a performing arts school (just like FAME!) to our annual Spring Break trip exploring someplace new. My mom is my biggest champion and taught me to commit fully, not to give up, and that if I could dream something up, I could also do it. My grandpa is another hero of mine. He helped put me through college, cultivated my curiosities about astrophysics, instilled strong discipline in me, and also taught me to have a sense of humor.

Share your favorite funny or interesting dad-moments: One of my favorite stories that my grandpa likes to tell is from his time in the Air Force. After a long mission, he and his crew went to the officer’s club for a beer while wearing their flight suits. There was a rule that you couldn't wear your flight suits in the club. When approached and reminded about this rule, instead of leaving or changing, my grandpa stripped down to his underwear, stayed at the bar, and enjoyed a beer with his team!

What's something about fatherhood that you weren't expecting? A while after we welcomed my daughter, my mom told me a touching story. While I was in the hospital recovering, my husband, David, shared with my mom that it was love at first sight with our daughter from the very first moment they met. The most beautiful thing is witnessing the very special bond my daughter and my husband share.

How are you celebrating Father's Day this year? I'll be celebrating all of the father figures in my life! We'll be visiting my husband's father this year to celebrate them both. And of course, I'll be making the annual "Happy Father's Day!" calls to my mom, grandpa, and my stepfather, Papa Russ!