In honor of Father’s Day, the editorial board decided to regale you with tales of how we chose to celebrate the role fathers have played in our lives. May your families be well and your fathers be wise.

Fathers can provide the same care as mothers:

We treated my dad to an early dinner on Father’s Day in Des Moines.  As I surveyed the scene, four generations of my family sitting for a meal to celebrate an amazing man, I felt tears well up in my eyes. I know that we are so fortunate to have this amazing man who fills so many roles: a husband of more than 50 years, a father of four, grandfather of eight, great grandfather of two – with us every day and particularly on the one day every year that everyone takes a moment to officially pay tribute to “Dad.”

One day seems insufficient to me to celebrate everything that a man takes on when he becomes a dad. Even as our society strives toward a more egalitarian state, moms are often viewed as the teachers that raise the children while the role of a dad is often overlooked or minimized. However, the role dad plays is equally important and crucial in teaching and raising children.

For example, in my family, dad undertook the traditional role of breadwinner, yet was also ever-present in the lives of his children. Dad taught us many valuable life skills by example. He taught us compassion, volunteerism, ingenuity, hard work, loyalty, education and honor.

Moms teach us many things, but dads teach us things in different ways — sometimes very different. I may not be able to fix anything that breaks like my dad can, but, I know that the person I’ve become is due to what I’ve learned from both my parents, not one more than the other.

As I reflect on what dad encompasses, my wish is that we understand that a dad’s role is not less than a mother’s in the lives of children. They are equally important even though they may appear very different on the surface.

Fathers are more than merely authority figures:

Being raised by my dad alone for much of my life, Father’s Day holds particular significance for me. Throughout my life, my dad has filled the role of both parents, and has served as a mentor, confidant and friend.

Unfortunately, this was the first year I was not able to make the five-hour trek home to the Chicago suburbs to spend the day with him. However, we still had a great day together. I walked him through setting up his DVR, iPhone and Skype, and even attempted to give him a tutorial on how to send text messages.

While his introduction to the 21^st Century was insanely stressful on my part, it was great to spend time with him, even if it was over the phone. I could never repay him for how much he has done for me, but hopefully this was a pretty good start.

A father can be anyone that fills an important role in your life:

I’m not a fan of soundbites, so for this Father’s Day editorial I’ve struggled to find something unique and meaningful to say; not just about my dad specifically, but all fathers and their role in our lives.

I love my dad, that’s easy to say. My feelings toward my father have run the gamut over the years, from the times I idolized his tremendous strength as a little kid to more recent times where I’ve ground my teeth in frustration, barely able to stand the man. But I’ve always loved him.

So the question then becomes, why do I love him? Why should I?

The answer is so infuriatingly intangible I can’t believe I’m resorting to such a childish response. I love him because he’s my dad. Just because. I’m not sure I can really explain it any better than that. He’s a part of me and I’m a part of him.

Now, being the flaming liberal I am, I’d like to put forth the disclaimer that I believe all kinds of fathers deserve such love and recognition. Single fathers, gay fathers, siblings or relatives who take on the role of father, community fathers, even those who are fathers not necessarily to children, but to ideas.

To me, these fathers are equivalent to the biological father a person is assumed to have. They’re equivalent because the things a father does are the exact same things a mother does, a friend does, a teacher does, a love does: They give a piece of themselves to help you become whole.

Hopefully this Father’s Day, you were able to return the favor.