Portrait of a Dad

This room was once his office, his sanctum.  Now...

Isn't this guy earning his "Greatest Dad" mug?

And before he ever changed a diaper, mixed a bottle, or soothed a teething infant in the dark of night, he supported my graduate work; taught me to drive (I'd had a nervous fear of it); and risked heart and savings for the sake of adopting our two baby daughters.  Need I add that he tolerates my whims and changing moods?  ...Marrying him was the best decision of my life!  I suspected it then; I know it now.

Professionally, he's an historian: associate professor, and as with most academics, an author/editor too.  In September ABC-CLIO will publish his encyclopedia of race and ethnicity in the U.S. military; and Osprey has printed many of his overviews of cavalry and African-American military history.  His work has also appeared in such journals asWar and Society and the Journal of Military History.

However, it's in the classroom that he's truly in his element.  A born storyteller, he communicates with poise, clarity, and a contagious enthusiasm.  In pre-parenthood days I once sat in on a full semester of his history intro course, for sheer pleasure of it.

A huge thank you to him-- and to all husbands and fathers who strive every day to serve their families and apply their gifts!  We do appreciate you-- love you, too-- but, human as we are, we so often forget to show it.