For as long as I can remember, I have had one goal in life.

Someday, I want to be able to say I was just as successful as my dad. Now, I don’t mean that in a monetary kind of way or a more prestigious job kind of way. I mean it in a father kind of way.

My dad has always been able to put food on the table and provide shelter for me, my brother and my mom. He may have to work six days a week, 10 hours a day, but he always finds a way to provide for my family.

We are talking about the same man who, no matter what kind of day he had, always finds a way to play catch with the football or baseball with my brother and me. This is the same man who wakes up before the sun rises in order to take me or my brother to sporting events.

The very reason my brother and I are attending WSU is because of our dad.

Ever since I was born, on his birthday no less, I was destined to be a Coug. I remember the old days of coming to Cougar football games and my dad having to cover me and my brother in four or five blankets just to make sure we were always warm during those frigid November football games.

That’s the kind of guy my dad is, always making sure other people’s needs are met before his own. Maybe that’s why he works in the hospitality industry. In such an industry, you almost have to put the job in front of your family due to working holidays and moving all over the place at a moment’s notice.

My dad has found a way to cheat the system. He has been able to work a steady managerial job at the Coeur d’Alene Resort for the past 15 years, spend nearly every Thanksgiving and Christmas with his family and still find time to take the family to Seahawks and Mariners games.

Now, with both me and my brother here in Pullman, my dad visits frequently. He still only gets one day off, but he’d rather spend two hours on the road each way, see us for a few hours and go back home, than to spend that day off not seeing us. I, along with my brother, are thankful to have such a loving, committed Dad.

I have a long road to accomplish my goal, but that’s ok with me. It just means that my dad is one hell of a dad.