Media Release
4 September 2003
The ties he really wants
The ties that will really warm Dad's heart on Father's Day (subs: 7 September) can not be bought in any shop or on the
internet. They don't even have to cost a lot of money. Plunket reminds us that the ties that bind are the best ones any
father can have.
This Sunday, Plunket would love to see Father's Day as an occasion for celebrating dads and acknowledging the important
impact that a father has on his children's development.
Craig Pollock, General Manager, Marketing and Communications for the Royal New Zealand Plunket Society says "Father's
Day is a way of recognizing the special bond between a Dad and his kids. It's a day to celebrate all of the things that
make him eager to spend time with them and his kids thrilled to see him."
"Gone are the days when society - or fathers themselves - are willing to see the role of dads mainly as being the income
provider or disciplinarian."
"The loving attention a father gives his children has an enormous impact on their long term emotional health - not just
in childhood. And the practical and emotional support he gives his partner is especially important for the mothers who
suffer from post natal depression."
Understanding that it can be a challenge especially for parents who no longer live together, Plunket urges all parents
to provide a model for respectful and considerate relationships between themselves and their children ". . . as well as
doing everything possible to see that the children have a good relationship with both Mum and Dad".
"Plunket sees the evidence all the time: there is no doubt that being nurtured and cared for by two loving adults is the
surest recipe for healthy, well-adjusted children."
"What still needs to be more widely celebrated however is the joy and warmth Dad reaps from those connections. What
better day than Father's Day to look at ways we all can support and encourage that very special tie between fathers and
their children?"
ENDS