As CEO of the National Center for Fathering, Carey Casey uses his experience and stories―and his engaging, personable tone―to inspire champions-to-be in fathering. Championship Fathering will help fathers raise healthy, well-adjusted, confident kids―mentally, physically, and spiritually. It will help fathers use the principles of championship fathering: Loving, Coaching and Modeling. Men will appreciate Carey Casey’s experiences in sports. He is currently chaplain for the Kansas City Chiefs. The book also includes a foreword by Tony Dungy. A 3-minute daily radio feature hosted by Carey Casey, Today’s Father, is heard on over 600 stations nationwide. CHAMPIONSHIP FATHERING How to Win at Being a Dad By CAREY CASEY NEIL WILSON Tyndale House Publishers Inc. Copyright © 2008 Carey Casey All right reserved. ISBN: 978-1-58997-534-7 Contents Acknowledgments...........................................ixForeword..................................................xiiiIntroduction..............................................11 From One Dad to Another.................................52 Championship Fathering: What Is It?.....................173 Getting Involved with Your Kids.........................274 Love 101................................................415 How to Love Your Children...............................516 Loving Your Children's Mother...........................697 Coaching................................................858 Coaching with Insight...................................979 Modeling................................................11510 Modeling Faith and Values..............................13511 A Vision for the World.................................157Epilogue..................................................167Notes.....................................................170 Chapter One From One Dad to Another As my co-workers at the National Center for Fathering know, I tend to use illustrations from the world of sports. That's because (1) I'm familiar with athletics, and (2) I know a lot of guys would rather talk sports than talk fathering. I like to do both. Until I was seriously injured while playing football for the University of North Carolina, involvement in athletics was a significant part of my life. That allowed me to move into some unusual territory. I was Lawrence Taylor's first roommate in school long before he was a New York Giant or headed for the Hall of Fame. In fact, I was an upperclassman starter when L.T. was wondering if he would make the team! Later I spent several decades working for the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. And over the years, I've been privileged to be a chapel speaker for every team in the National Football League. That's why I've been able to count well-known coaches and players among my friends. The picture collection on our refrigerator at home features not only our children but also the families of sports figures with whom we've shared our lives. This might sound glamorous, except that we know these celebrities as people-as mothers, fathers, and children. One of those people was Reggie White. A Championship Father Reggie White played with the Philadelphia Eagles, Green Bay Packers, and Carolina Panthers-and was an ordained minister. Every so often, he'd help me out as a guest speaker. When he visited, he never stayed in a hotel. He always wanted to stay in our home. When I went to visit him, it was the same. At one point, my bride, Melanie, and I had to put a king-sized bed in our guest room for the times when Reggie stayed over. Reggie White was a giant of a man. But he never considered himself too important to learn more about fatherhood. Reggie had grown up without positive fathering role models. But he was persistent in trying to find strong father figures by choosing mentors. I believe that's why he liked staying in our home. I think he wanted to see family. He wanted to see how I as an older guy (maybe six years older) managed my household and raised my kids. He was always searching, seeking to get better beyond football-and fathering was one area in which he was determined to improve. I was sort of a brother and a father figure to Reggie. He could ask me things, tell me things, share and be honest with me. I was an on-call friend. We didn't talk a whole lot, but when we did the conversations were about things that mattered. One fatherly trait I observed in Reggie was that he knew how to have fun with our children. When he was with them, he was a big kid. I'm six-one-and-a-half-but I'm also fifty-two years old, so it's tough getting on the floor. This dude was six-five, three hundred and some pounds, and he would hit the carpet with my children, ready for tumbling and wrestling even after he'd played a football game or had a workout. As cool and big-time as he was, Reggie knew how to have fun with kids. Sadly, Reggie passed away in 2004. And sadly, when I look into the faces of an NFL team to