A rchive Date
[ 18-06-2000 ]
Category
[ International Relations ]
sub-Categoy
[ Canada ]
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[Special thanks to a special dad
By MINDELLE JACOBS
Edmonton Sun
June 18, 2000
You have probably never heard of Said Najmeddine and there's no reason you should have.
He's not a public figure or a singing sensation, hasn't been honoured for academic or athletic pursuits, he never made a million bucks or wrote a best-seller.
As his oldest daughter, Fatima, puts it: "He's not a prime minister, he's not a Hollywood star but to all of us, he's our hero."
Said, 75, is not famous and he wouldn't want to be. But renown is not the only measure of success and he is an extremely accomplished man.
How else would you describe someone who emigrated from Lebanon five decades ago with nothing and raised 10 children with the love and support of his wife, Aminah?
And how do you say Happy Father's Day to a dad who's had all the usual presents over the years - shirts, ties, socks and wallets - but never had much use for gifts because he's such a self-effacing man?
Oh sure, there'll be the usual extended family gathering today at Said and Aminah's home - 10 children, 24 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
"You ain't seen nothing until you've seen a gathering at mom and dad's. It's an absolute asylum but there's never any headaches," says son Albert, 41.
Most of all, there'll be lots of love. That's the best Father's Day gift of all, his kids decided.
What better way to thank a simple, uneducated man, who laid pipe for the city water and sanitation department for 27 years, for his hard work, generosity and devotion to his family?
"I never felt deprived of anything even though we didn't have bicycles or a room full of toys," recalls Jamel, 34.
"I think it's a tribute to him that all of us have done so well for ourselves."
Three brothers are CN executives, another is a Telus manager, the fifth sells cars and the sixth distributes baking supplies.
One sister is the director of an international school in Oman, another is a medical secretary, the third is in catering and Fatima is off work right now recuperating from medical problems.
Now that they're all grown with parenting struggles of their own, they're awestruck at how their dad did it. Without Aminah's round-the-clock work at home, of course, raising 10 kids would have been an impossible task.
But this is Father's Day so Said and all the other dads out there working long hours in mostly unglamorous jobs are today's unsung heroes.
"How in hell did he ever do it?" wonders Albert, who has two children of his own.
"If I can only do half as much as he's done with his children, I'll be a successful father," he says.
But Said, the devout Muslim and father who was always so strong for his kids, is failing in health now, suffering from complications from diabetes and loss of memory. Now the children must be strong for their dad.
"When you're growing up as a kid, you always think your father will be there for everything and now he can't," says Tammy, 29, the baby of the family.
"It's been tough watching him deteriorate," says Jamel. The man who used to pile the whole family into a station wagon for a trip to the mountains doesn't get around much any more.
But in his children's eyes, he's a giant.
"In this day and age, everything is so materialistic and depersonalized," says daughter Mariam, 44. "But this is a simple man who raised his kids the old-fashioned way. Nobody's perfect but he's the closest thing to it."
Happy Father's Day, Said.
Mindelle can be reached by e-mail at mjacobs@sunpub.com
 World Fact Book (CIA)]
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