Redwood City – Why celebrate just Father’s Day when there’s Fatherhood Week?
Fatherhood Week is for those eager to honor a father, a father figure, paternal bonds or anyone who’s been a positive influence. It’s a way to celebrate all that fathers do for their children. Here are seven ideas to spend time with little or no cost with someone important to you during the week of June 19-25.
Practice your ABCs (and your SSFs) by climbing on a giant letter at Sign Hill. First laid out in the 1920s, the iconic letters that spell “South San Francisco The Industrial City” are reachable via a short but steep hike at a city park. Take a selfie with a sweeping view of San Mateo County in the background or try for as much of a letter as you can. Get directions and learn more.
A series of steep but relatively short trails lead to the giant letters visible for miles from Sign Hill.
Capture Fatherhood Week memories with a GoPro Action Camera Kit from San Mateo County Libraries, free to check out with your library card. Other fun options for Fatherhood Week: Book a Bike, County Parks passes and State Parks passes.
Join the County’s Juneteenth Advisory Committee for a short film screening commemorating Juneteenth and the Black experience in America. This special event with a moderated discussion, refreshments and guests takes place Wednesday, June 21, 2023, from 5 to 7:30 p.m. at the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, 801 Jefferson Ave., Redwood City 94063. Space is limited so RSVP now.
Make sure everyone in the family is up-to-date on their recommended vaccinations (well, not exactly a celebration but it’s important). Newborns, babies, teens, pregnant women, adults and older adults need immunizations to stay healthy and protected from diseases, such as polio, whooping cough (pertussis), measles, hepatitis B and flu.
Take part in the first Bioblitz at Mirada Surf and Quarry Parks on Saturday, June 24, 2023. (Bioblitz: Surveying and recording all the living species in a given area.) County Parks is teaming with the California Academy of Sciences and Sequoia Audubon Society for this first-of-its-kind event in these two County parks. Reserve a spot.
Watch the action at San Carlos or Half Moon Bay airports. A free air show is always available (weather permitting) at your County-run airports. Visitors may see aircraft from the San Mateo County Sheriff's Office, CAL FIRE and U.S. Coast Guard, among other public service and first-responder agencies.
Blow some bubbles at the Pulgas Water Temple. If you are missing your dad or anyone’s dad, imagine the bubbles are carrying messages. The City of San Francisco built Pulgas Water Temple as a monument to the engineering marvel that brought Hetch Hetchy water more than 160 miles across from the Sierra Nevada to the Bay Area. Check out directions and operating hours.
Fatherhood Week is celebrated by the San Mateo County Department of Child Support Services, whose mission is to enhance the lives of children and families by helping parents meet the financial, medical and emotional needs of their children by establishing and enforcing child support orders. For more information, go to https://www.smcgov.org/dcss.
Michelle Durand
mdurand@smcgov.org