A father’s role is ever evolving. As their children grow, fathers are constantly adapting to them, learning how to nurture them and be there for them at every stage of their lives. This June, Celebrating Fathers commemorates the lifelong journey of fatherhood and honours all fathers – from new dads to dads of adult children and even grandfathers!
Into its eighth year, Celebrating Fathers 2023 is themed “Honouring Fathers Through The Generations” and aims to recognise and encourage dads in their fathering journey. Celebrating Fathers 2023, which runs from 3 June to 2 July 2023, is jointly organised by Centre for Fathering (CFF), DADs for Life (DFL), MUMs for Life, Families for Life and Mediacorp, in support of National Family Week and Made For Families. First launched in 2016, the annual Celebrating Fathers campaign is a nation-wide initiative that aims to recognise the efforts and contributions of Singapore’s dads.
Malay Muslim Fathers Honoured
In conjunction with Celebrating Fathers, over 7,000 children from 39 madrasahs and mosques honoured their fathers through handwritten Father’s Day cards provided by CFF and Bapa Sepanjang Hayat (DFL for the Malay Muslim community). The cards will be sent by post to their Dads so that they can be pleasantly surprised during Father’s Day. Last year, CFF and Bapa Sepanjang Hayat organised a similar activity for 1,000 students. The meaningful initiative was expanded to reach even more fathers and children this year as it was well received. “
Once a father, always a father. No matter which stage we are in our fathering journey, we should cherish every moment with our children. No matter how old they are, our children will look to us for support, affirmation and encouragement,” said Mr Bryan Tan, CEO, Centre for Fathering, DADs for Life and MUMs for Life. “Fathers at different life stages have much to learn from each other and older fathers can pass on their experiences to their sons and other younger fathers.This year’s Celebrating Fathers is a reminder that the generational bond between grandfathers, fathers and children lasts a lifetime.”
“The theme of Celebrating Fathers 2023 is a poignant reminder for us to honour and show appreciation for the father figures in our lives, regardless of our life stages. Strong intergenerational bonds within the family demonstrates values such as love and respect, from fathers to their children and vice versa. The Father Day’s card writing activity initiative by CFF and Bapa Sepanjang Hayat is a simple but meaningful way of putting love into action, or in this case, words as well! I encourage families to say “yes” to family time and participate in the National Family Week activities during the June school holidays,” added Mr Ishak Ismail, Families for Life Council Chairman.
“Mediacorp is once again excited to work with our partners to honour fathers through Celebrating Fathers 2023,” said Mr Parminder Singh, Chief Commercial and Digital Officer, Mediacorp. “Through this campaign, we aim to leverage our star power and strengths in storytelling to shine a well-deserved spotlight on fathers and the immeasurable impact they have on our lives. We hope that all dads and their families will have a wonderful time bonding over the many activities and events this year!”
Family Fun at Dad’s Day Out 2023
Held on 18 June 2023 at OCBC Square, Dad’s Day Out 2023 was the key highlight and culminating point of the Celebrating Fathers series of activities this year. A day of family fun awaits fathers, grandfathers and their families. This year’s activities were specially curated to reflect the favourite activities of the three generations in our midst – from trishaw rides, giant jenga, giant pick-up sticks, three-legged races, bouncy castle to video console games. Families can also share the values they hope to pass down the generations and leave words of encouragement for fathers at the Family Tree.
Families at the event also honoured the fathers in their midst by presenting them with a commemorative DADs for Life Prepaid NETS card – a reminder that fatherhood is for life! Up to 2000 families who register ahead of time will receive an exclusive Celebrating Fathers goodie bag.
Line Up of Events
The Celebrating Fathers events are part of the National Family Week (NFW) celebrations from 3 to 11 June 2023 led by Families for Life Council. NFW 2023 presents a line-up of exciting programmes and activities islandwide for families of all ages. Spread over 30 constituencies, 20 SportSG centres and 6 NFW locations, highlights include games, crafts, ActiveSG’s “GameOn Nila! – Our Family Trial”, inclusive sport activities, Family Picnic, Becky Bunny bouncy castles and many other NFW activities. On 10 and 11 June 2023, the DADs for Life Cup took place at the Yishun Futsal Court and Open Field. Eighteen teams made up of veteran players, youths and other players joined in for a chance to clinch the winning titles. The event is organised by Impart Singapore, a nonprofit organisation dedicated to transforming Singaporean youths, in support of Singapore’s DADs for Life movement.