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Atlantic
15-06-2025
- General
- Atlantic
Being a Dad Is About More Than Being Around
In the summer of 1968, a few months after the Tet Offensive shook America's confidence in the Vietnam War, my father deployed for his second combat tour. He left behind six children and his wife of 21 years. Over the following year, he commanded an infantry brigade in combat, earned his third and fourth Silver Stars for valor, and all but secured his promotion to brigadier general. It was a career-defining tour. But for my siblings and me, 9,000 miles away, it was also a year without a dad at home. My mother carried the family with extraordinary strength. But we missed out on things: Dad wasn't around to watch baseball or coach basketball. The familiar figure renovating the old house my parents had bought after his first tour in Vietnam simply wasn't there. Parts of my father's life did not go smoothly. He made mistakes—as humans do. And if you assessed him strictly on his 'dad duties,' you may have found him lacking. Yet when he died at 89 and our family buried him at Arlington National Cemetery, I knew I'd had the best father I could have asked for. For as long as I can remember, I wanted to be like him. He was steady under pressure, humble in success, principled always. His example gave me something to aim for—even if I never quite hit the mark. This is what the best of dads do for us. They set the mark. Today we talk a lot about the importance of fathers taking on an equal role in parenting responsibilities, and that's a good thing. But we don't talk enough about the power of example. Fathers are more than disciplinarians, providers, or part-time coaches. They are living, breathing case studies in character, and whether they're physically present or not, their influence seeps into their children. Children are observant. Even when they don't have the words, they are watching. They see how we, as parents, treat people. They hear what we say when the person being discussed isn't in the room. They notice when our words don't match our behavior. And quietly, over the years, they begin to understand what character really looks like. We tend to default to simpler measures: Did you get to the game on time? Did you plan the vacation? Did you take the photo? Those things matter too, of course, but they are incomplete. If we want our children to understand courage, we must demonstrate it. If we want them to value humility, we must practice it. These aren't messages delivered in a single conversation. They're impressions formed over a lifetime. That's why the responsibilities of fatherhood extend far beyond the household. Who we are in our community, in our professions, under pressure—that's what counts. When our external behaviors contradict what we preach at home, we can't expect our children to absorb the better version. They will inherit the whole. This is not a permission slip to skip bedtime stories or miss first steps. The presence of a parent matters. But what matters more, and carries further, is the parent's character. Character is what follows our children when they are alone, unsure, or tested; it becomes the compass they refer to when we're not around to offer directions. As I reflect on my own failings as a dad, what I hope I offered most is not memories but modeling. I tried to live my values. I tried to be the same man in uniform as I was at home. That's what I learned from my own father. The day my dad died, he had four grandsons serving in Afghanistan. They weren't their grandfather, or their respective fathers, but each understood the sacrifice they were making. Their own children lost out on some things, but received the gift of example in return. This Father's Day, I propose a broader definition of what it means to celebrate fathers. Let's celebrate those who lead lives worth emulating, even when they're not in the room. We don't need perfect fathers. But we do need honest ones. Consistent ones. Men of character who, even in their absence, remain guiding stars.
The Citizen
13-06-2025
- Sport
- The Citizen
The sound of victory: introducing blind soccer
The Corinthians Africa blind football team triumphed in the inaugural Johannesburg Blind Football Association League match at Paterson Multipurpose Centre in Norwood on June 7, defeating Future Stars 4–0. Tumelo Phakisa was named Man of the Match. Other participating teams included Silver Stars and Protea Tigers. Using sport to uplift, empower, and transform lives is one of the most effective tools in community development, especially in tackling issues like substance abuse. But what if sport could be even more inclusive, embracing those often overlooked, like the blind? Blind individuals possess extraordinary capabilities far beyond navigating daily life without sight. They can compete, entertain, and inspire. This is the vision that drives the Corinthians Africa organisation. Rooted in faith and family values, the Corinthians aim to help the blind believe in their potential. Their Blind Soccer programme is a groundbreaking initiative: a beautiful game played without sight but with unmatched spirit and skill. Imagine a soccer pitch where silence is vital. Players don't follow the ball with their eyes, but with their ears, attuned to the bells inside. Every pass, tackle, and goal relies on trust, heightened hearing, and the guiding voices of coaches. This is Blind Soccer, where ability is redefined. 'Why blindfold players who are already blind?' one might ask. Jack Msibi, co-founder of Corinthians Africa, answers with conviction: 'Because Blind Soccer is about equality. Blindfolds level the field so that partially and fully blind players compete side by side, with no advantage and no compromise.' For Jack and his team, this is more than a game; it's a mission. A spark of hope where society once turned away. To deepen understanding, sighted audience members were blindfolded and invited to play against experienced blind athletes. Disoriented and uncoordinated, they were quickly outplayed, delivering a powerful lesson. Sight, it turns out, is no guarantee of success here. The official match began in near silence. Ten blindfolded players, some fully blind, others partially, took their positions. Each team had five players, guided only by instinct, sound, and the unwavering voices of their coaches. Goalkeepers, the only sighted players allowed, stood ready as guardians. Coaches paced the sidelines, shouting instructions: 'Stretch your hands out!' 'Left, turn left, listen to the ball!' The ball jingled with movement. Feet clashed, collided, and danced across the field. Paramedics stood by, ready to assist if needed. Spectators watched in awe, speaking in hushed tones as they witnessed innovation in action. They quickly learned that Blind Soccer isn't just a game—it's a discipline. No shouting, just focused attention and admiration. The players moved with remarkable awareness, navigating by sound and muscle memory, creating moments of near-magical coordination. It wasn't just impressive; it was deeply moving. Blind Soccer, powered by the Corinthians Africa family, is more than sport. It's about rewriting the narrative of disability. It proves that greatness doesn't require sight; it requires courage, community, and opportunity. Welcome to the game where vision is redefined. Welcome to Blind Soccer. At Caxton, we employ humans to generate daily fresh news, not AI intervention. Happy reading!
CTV News
07-06-2025
- Entertainment
- CTV News
Silver Stars in final rehearsals for 40th production, 'Agent Quest'
Calgary Watch The Silver Stars Musical Review Society, which started up in the '90s and is heading into its 40th production, is proving age is no deterrent to acting.
CTV News
06-06-2025
- Entertainment
- CTV News
Seasoned and rookie actors come together in Silver Stars production ‘Agent Quest'
What do you get when you blend summer action blockbusters with a little bit of Golden Girls? The Silver Star Musical Review Society is proud to present its 40th show -- Agent Quest. It's a take-off on spy movies with a number of operatives all interested in becoming the newest James Bond character. It's a custom script written by Gail Whiteford with spies singing, dancing and trying to eliminate each other in pursuit of their goal to become the next 007. 'I thought since there's a big kerfuffle about who the new 007 for the movie (franchise) is going to be, why didn't we do that?' said playwright Gail Whiteford, who also directs. 'There's a little bit of comics, a little bit of the Austin Powers franchise and there's four characters from the James Bond franchise.' This is the third custom script Whiteford has written for Silver Stars. The actors range in age from their 40s into their mid-80s and some are seasoned performers while others are making their stage debut. They audition for roles and sometimes Whiteford has to be able to pivot when she runs into age-related issues with the actors. 'I had this great idea of one of the characters who plays the pilot from a James Bond movie and she was up (on stage) and she was going to come down and sing in the audience,' said Whiteford. 'She said to me 'I can't do stairs, I have bad knees' so we've got one with a bad back, two with bad knees, one with a bad foot and two with bad legs.' Former professional performers Silver Stars was founded in 1998 by a troupe of former professional performers who wished to continue bringing the magic of Broadway to the stage. For the last 27 years, they've chosen an annual theme and have produced energetic, entertaining musical revue shows for spring time audiences. The group's mandate is to facilitate artistic expression and foster inclusion in their productions. 'It is so motivating and so heartwarming once you are in with a group of people who support each other in their aspirations,' said Hanna Hess, president and performer. 'Because being creative doesn't always give good feedback or it's got its ups and downs as far as growing pains go.' Hess says she's one of the two oldest performers in their mid-80s. 'If you look at the name 'silver' you may think it's really senior,' she said. 'But we are encouraging a lot of people to come in their 30s and 40s to join us as well, because we are a high energy group, anyone who comes to the show will see that energy and just because of age, it doesn't preclude the energy.' Hess says the group meets twice a week to rehearse their roles because she says sometimes they forget too much if they leave it a whole week. The Silver Stars performers are always looking for new members to join them on stage. 'We're inviting anyone who would like to come and just have the fun of performing,' she said. 'It's not for the faint of heart, there's a big commitment but it's fun to come out.' Agent Quest will host three performances at the Irish Cultural Society, 6452 – 34 Avenue NW on Saturday, June 7 at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. and the third on Sunday, June 8 at 2 pm. Learn more about Silver Stars and it's latest production here.
Yahoo
27-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Where Are Chris Kyle's Kids Today? What to Know About the 'American Sniper' Subject's Family
It's been over a decade since Navy SEAL Chris Kyle — widely known as the most lethal sniper in American history — was murdered, leaving behind his wife Taya and their children, Colton and McKenna. Kyle, who served four tours in Iraq from 1999 to 2009, had 160 confirmed kills and received numerous awards, including two Silver Stars and five Bronze Stars with valor. He's also the inspiration behind Clint Eastwood's 2014 film American Sniper, which was added to the Netflix library on April 21. When he returned home, Kyle spent time with his kids, co-founded a security training firm and supported veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). His time as a family man was tragically cut short when a fellow veteran killed him at a shooting range. While Colton and McKenna were 8 and 6, respectively, when their father was murdered, they still remember the profound mark he left on their lives. So where are Chris Kyle's children now? Here's everything to know about Colton and McKenna's lives today and how they honor their late dad's memory. Kyle was a Navy SEAL who was considered the deadliest sniper in U.S. history. He was born and raised in Odessa, Texas, where his father gave him his first rifle when he was 8 years old, per Shooting Illustrated. Kyle had always intended to join the military after graduating from high school, but he was initially denied when he was 20 due to a rodeo injury. 'That same recruiter kept my phone number, and I guess they must have been short a few guys, because he called me a few years later,' he told Shooting Illustrated. In 1998, Kyle enlisted in the military and began basic training the following year. He became renowned for his sniper skills, at one point accurately aiming for a target over 2,100 yards away. Related: The True Story Behind American Sniper: All About the Real Chris Kyle, Including His Tragic 2013 Death With 160 confirmed kills, he remains the most successful sniper in American history; by his own count, the number is closer to twice that, he told D Magazine. 'I'm just a regular guy,' Kyle later told D magazine. 'I just did a job. I was in some badass situations, but it wasn't just me. My teammates made it possible.' In 2009, Kyle was honorably discharged after 10 years of service. His decision was primarily motivated by a desire to spend more time with his family, Taya wrote in her 2015 memoir, American Wife: A Memoir of Love, War, Faith, and Renewal. Following his return home, Kyle co-founded Craft International, a security training firm for the U.S. military now called Tac. In 2012, he published an autobiography, American Sniper: The Autobiography of the Most Lethal Sniper in U.S. Military History, which became the basis for the film American Sniper. After returning home from his final deployment, Kyle began working with fellow veterans dealing with PTSD. Kyle believed in the therapeutic nature of bringing fellow veterans to gun ranges where they could be around people who had been in similar combat situations. On Feb. 2, 2013, Kyle, 38, and his friend Chad Littlefield, 35, were shot and killed by former Marine Eddie Ray Routh, whom they took to a shooting range in Glen Rose, Texas. Routh's mother — a teacher's aide at McKenna and Colton's school — had asked Kyle for help with her son, who had been diagnosed with PTSD. Following six months in Iraq, Routh had been suffering from mental health issues. Weeks before meeting Kyle, he was checked into a psychiatric hospital after holding his girlfriend Jennifer Weed and her roommate hostage at their apartment, The Trace reported. At Green Oaks Hospital in Dallas, doctors said he was exhibiting paranoia, was 'impulsively violent' and spiraling into 'first-break schizophrenia.' On Feb. 1, 2013, Routh proposed to Weed, but the following morning, they got into a fight, per The Trace. That afternoon, Kyle and Littlefield picked Routh up in Kyle's pickup truck to go to the shooting range. In interviews with a forensic psychiatrist, Routh said that he believed Kyle and Littlefield were going to kill him. At the shooting range, Routh shot Littlefield seven times in the back. When he saw Kyle turning toward him, he also shot him six times. Routh then fled the scene. After weeks of testimony, Routh was convicted of murder in February 2015, and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Taya Kyle (née Studebaker), who grew up in Portland, Ore., was working as a pharmaceutical sales representative in Southern California when she met Kyle during a night out. 'We're in a bar, and he was so genuine and had a depth to him and this really hot body with a cute face and then an interesting career path,' Taya told ABC News in April 2015. 'I was intrigued, but I didn't think that it would ever be anything serious.' The two married on March 16, 2002, exchanging inscribed wedding bands. On Kyle's ring, Taya wrote, "My life, my love." On Taya's, Kyle penned, "All of me." While Kyle served in Iraq, Taya raised the couple's children on her own. After Kyle's fourth tour, Taya asked him to return home to focus on their family. She recounted that telling her children about Kyle's death in 2013 was one of the most difficult moments of her life. Sitting on her front lawn with her children on each knee, she told them, 'Something really bad has happened.' ' 'The tears just poured out. We just sat out there in the grass for a while and I just held them,' Taya told PEOPLE. Since Kyle's death, Taya has become an author. In 2015, she released her autobiography, American Wife: A Memoir of Love, Service, Faith, and Renewal, which details her life as a military wife and how she dealt with Kyle's death. Nearly a decade later, in 2024, she released her debut children's book entitled Prayers for Bears: Bailey the Grateful Bear. On Veterans Day in 2014, Taya founded the Taya and Chris Kyle Foundation, which is dedicated to strengthening service marriages across the United States. She currently serves as executive director. Taya has not dated or remarried since Kyle's death, she told PEOPLE in April 2024. "There's a line in Ed Sheeran's song, 'Tenerife Sea,' that says, 'Should this be the last thing I see, I want you to know it's enough for me,' ' she said. 'I think there was a big loyalty part of me that wanted to let him know that he was enough for me." At the time of their father's death, Colton and McKenna were just 8 and 6 years old, respectively. Both siblings were devastated by the news. Looking back, Colton 'took his death so incredibly hard," he told PEOPLE in April 2024. Kyle's death, meanwhile, caused McKenna to fixate on the negative in life. 'My main coping mechanism was to look at everything as negative so I wouldn't feel something I thought was perfect was taken away again,' she told PEOPLE. 'I had an idea in my head that God's love was performance-based. That if I wasn't perfect, he would love me less.' However, the family has credited therapy, their strong bond and their religious faith with helping them through the most painful moments. McKenna is 'learning to see the good in the world again.' His dad's death has pushed Colton to be a better person, he added. 'Through adversity, through fire, gold is refined,' he said. 'I am a better man today than I would have been if I had not lost my father, especially at the time that I did. I have grown so much spiritually and emotionally." After graduating from high school in 2023, Colton assumed stewardship of the American Sniper brand. He hopes to carry on his father's values, which are 'duty, sacrifice, patriotism, being God-fearing, freedom, family and excellence," Colton told PEOPLE in 2024. 'My mom has allowed me to move forward with it and see everything I can do with it,' he said. 'I'll be exploring lifestyle gear and serving active military and veterans through the brand.' In his free time, Colton enjoys bodybuilding, Muay Thai, snowboarding, hunting, shooting, philosophy and gaming, he shared on Instagram. Colton is also dedicated to his Christian faith. He hopes to earn a Ph.D. in Apologetics eventually, he shared in a 2024 TikTok. Meanwhile, McKenna graduated from high school in 2024. She is currently on a gap year, per her bio on the Taya and Chris Kyle Foundation website. Currently, she is going "behind the scenes at Tarrant County Sheriff's Office, doing ride-alongs with deputies and interviewing prisoners" to share via social media. 'I show the behind-the-scenes of what law enforcement actually does, showing things like the forensic and canine units,' she told PEOPLE in 2024. 'That's really exciting to me. And it's also something that my dad was interested in. So I think that it's kind of carrying on his legacy.' McKenna is considering a career in psychology in the hopes of one day becoming a counselor at the Taya and Chris Kyle Foundation. She is also developing a podcast, "where she and her family will answer their followers' questions regarding healing, perseverance, and faith," according to her foundation bio. Read the original article on People
