Happy Father’s Day From Donald Flannery

In celebration of Father's Day on Sunday June 17, we asked Patch readers to write a letter to their father and let us deliver it. This is Donald Flannery's letter to his dad:

My father had the greatest unspoken love for his family. I don’t remember him ever saying, “I love you,” but he showed it, not only by providing for his immediate family, but also by helping his brothers and sisters if they were in need, in any way he could.

My mother never had to work outside our family. He never had a new car — in fact, he didn’t own a car for the first few years he was married. He walked to work several miles every day, except when it was raining and he took the bus. He never took a vacation without taking the whole family. I wish I could have been a husband and father like he was.

My father was the youngest of seven children, and his father died when he was 3 years old. As the only breadwinner, his mother did housework to support the family. His older brothers and sisters went to work as soon as they were able. His older brother went to work on the railroad, as did one of his sisters. Another sister went to work at the telephone company, and another became a nurse in the Army during World War 2. Another sister died at age 21.

—Donald Flannery

See all Father's Day letters here.

Image Credit: Shutterstock/ Africa Studio