DAN HOFFMAN: On Father’s Day, I thank God for every moment with my sons
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One night a few months ago, my little boy was getting ready for bed. As I was holding him in my arms and getting ready to say goodnight, he looked up at me and said: “Dad, I’ve had so many assists in my football matches over the last few years – I don’t remember the number. But I scored 31 goals. And you know what? You were there and you saw every single one.”
My son may not have realized it at the time, but he had just given me one of the most sincere compliments I have ever received.
To this day, I have not missed any of my son’s matches and attended almost all of his training sessions. On the rare occasions when my coach asked me to help run a practice, I felt like I had no choice but to touch the grass with my son and his football buddies.
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My father taught me to ski when I was 4 years old. We spent countless holidays and weekends together skiing in New England. But years later, I realized it was less about the skiing and more about the amazing father-son time we had together, which was ultimately the most important thing to both of us. Ski trips created opportunities for us to bond over topics that interested us—often Boston sports teams, history, and foreign policy. We developed a close relationship, especially when eating together and spending time in the car, and although I wasn’t ready to admit it as a teenager, my father was a role model that showed me how important family was in our lives.
On Father’s Day, my thoughts also turn to my friend and former CIA colleague Dave Tyson and Marine Corps officer and CIA paramilitary Case Officer Mike Spann; I will always regret not having the honor of meeting them in person. Mr. Tyson and Mr. Spann were part of the eight-man “Alpha Team” who were the first Americans to infiltrate Afghanistan and fight against the Taliban as part of Operation Enduring Freedom after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
They were gathering intelligence from hundreds of ruthless al-Qaeda fighters detained at Kale-i-Jengi, a historic fortress in Mazar-e-Sharif, on November 25, 2001. Mr. Spann had focused on American John Walker Lindh, a high-value detainee who trained at Al Qaeda’s notorious Al Farouk training camp, where at least seven of the 9/11 hijackers also spent time. Lindh reportedly met with Osama bin Laden weeks before the 9/11 attacks.
That day, during a violent prison riot, Mr. Spann heroically defended himself against impossible odds and Mr. Tyson fought his way to safety after failing in his first attempt to save Mr. Spann’s life. Mr. Spann was our nation’s first casualty in our war against Al Qaeda and the Taliban.
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Mr. Spann was a perfect example of CIA spy operations, courageously collecting intelligence while in danger so that we could detect and prevent threats to our homeland before any harm could come to our citizens. His memory is an inspiration to all of us who follow in his footsteps. Mr. Spann had three children, including his oldest daughter, who was 9 years old when he was killed. My heart breaks for them, especially every Father’s Day.
Mr. Tyson’s then-8-year-old son, who invited his father home when he realized he was on a dangerous mission in Afghanistan, referred to his father’s mud-covered boots as “Daddy’s lucky boots.”
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That pretty much sums up how I feel on Father’s Day.
My father passed away when I was in my 50s. Every day I spend with my sons is a blessing to me. This Father’s Day, as every year, I will be overflowing with gratitude for having the chance to celebrate the best time of my life with my sons.
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