Well, this is a first for me: Father’s Day without my father, Leo E.Perino.My dad died in his sleep at the end of May 2026, just 29 days after retiring.
He was 79.The guy loved to work.
And he loved his daughters.He was a wonderful girl father to two girls.Friends of mine who are now girl dads amaze me.
I think they’re very good at raising their daughters, so they don’t need advice from me.But here are five things my dad did that made a difference in my life and played a role in my success and happiness.FATHERS PLAY CRUCIAL ROLE FOR DAUGHTERS’ MENTAL HEALTH, SONS’ SCHOOL BEHAVIOR, STUDY FINDS1.
Early and consistent reinforcement of equality.Angie, my younger sister, and I were born in the 1970s.
That was the beginning of the "girl power" movement.My dad never preached about equality.
He just lived it.He regularly and consistently told us that girls could do anything they wanted to do, and that we didn’t have to set our goals short of the top just because we were female.
So, we grew up not ever thinking that.He said we could go far, and we did.
I recall having this ugly yellow T-shirt that said, "Anything boys can do, girls can do better." I wore it all the time — perhaps like today’s friendship bracelets, a little reminder that gets planted in your brain over time so that you believe in yourself.Leo Perino posing for a picture while sitting in a restaurant.(Dana Perino/Fox News Digital)2.
Education and reading — a priority.I learned to read pretty early in life and devoured books.
In third grade, he started a tradition with me where I had to read The Rocky Mountain News and The Denver Post before he got home from work, pick out two articles, and be prepared to discuss them.For years, we loved to discuss the news.
He subscribed to every weekly magazine, too.We’d dog-ear pages for each other and share them.
From that start, I’ve never stopped reading the news.But he wasn’t just teaching me to read the news.
He was teaching me to th...