Mayor’s Message: Father’s Day

Mayor Kevin Corcoran and his dad.

As Father’s Day approaches, I’ve been reflecting on my own dad and what he has meant to me.

I lost my mom when I was pretty young. My dad stepped up and filled both roles, and he did it without hesitation. There wasn’t much room for fooling around. We just had to get things done. Looking back, that’s where my sense of responsibility and accountability really took root. Not just because of the circumstances, but because of him and the way he carried himself, the way he just did what had to be done without complaint.

That’s self-sacrifice in its truest form. And it set the tone for the rest of my life.

I still use his story when I talk to my own kids. When I want them to understand what responsibility really means, I point to their grandfather, a man who, in a moment that could have gone a lot of different ways, chose to dedicate himself completely to his family. That’s the example I try to hold up for them. You just do what you have to do. That’s the guiding light.

It’s shaped how I try to lead, too. The biggest lesson I took from my dad is simple: lead from the front. Take care of what’s in front of you. Don’t wait for someone else to handle it. That idea of leading by example, I learned it at home long before I ever held public office.

To everyone in our community this Father’s Day, I hope you take a moment to cherish the father figure in your life, whoever that may be. I know families look a lot of different ways, and that’s okay. If you have someone who has shown up for you, who has sacrificed for you, make sure they know what they mean to you. That’s worth celebrating this Father’s Day.

Mayor Kevin Corcoran