Father's Day is especially meaningful for the Boehme family of McKeesport. There is an extra strong bond between the father and son of this family that was nurtured in the environment of a Masonic family, the Masonic lodge hall, camping and hunting, and anxious months in an intensive care unit. The father is Daniel Boehme, a member of Homestead-Amity-McCandless Lodge No. 582, Dravosburg, and served for some time as Masonic Education Chairman for the 49th Masonic District. The son is Isaac "Ike" John Boehme, Sr., now a Mason. The mother is Lynne, who heralds the importance of the values, principles, and character of fatherhood that make Father's Day meaningful. She tells the father-and-son story of Daniel and Ike better than anyone else.

"Here is a boy ­ now a man ­ who couldn't wait until he was old enough to petition the lodge. When he was young, he used to dream of becoming three things: a fireman, a Marine, and a Mason. By 19 he was already a volunteer fireman with three years' experience and a state certified EMT (Emergency Medical Technician). He was well on his way to becoming a Marine until he answered a fire call on an early August morning in 1995. Ike was standing on the tailboard of the fire truck when it crashed. The man standing next to him was killed. Ike spent three months in the ICU (Intensive Care Unit) at a Pittsburgh hospital and another four months in the hospital and rehab center. That was quite a tragic story extensively covered by the media.

"Ike is one of God's miracles. To make a long story short, I believe that it was his father, Daniel, who kept the boy alive and motivated him to recover to where he is today. Truly, I say this father is a saint. He never missed even one of the half-hour visiting times, twice a day, at the ICU for the three months that Ike was there ­ all while working full time and remodeling a three-story house that we were committed to have completed within four months.

"When Dan was most active in the lodge, ... it truly was a family affair. Ike went to the lodge hall with his Daddy at an early age. He helped Dad take care of the hall for the meeting. He helped Mom serve refreshments ­ sort of. He was always made to feel welcome. With all of that, there couldn't have been a more natural thing for him to do than petition the lodge two years ago when he was 21. Now, he is serving as Junior Warden and participating in the degree work.

"Today he is a Dad with his own little boy named Isaac John Boehme, Jr. Just as his Dad did, he takes little "Ikey" to the lodge whenever possible. One of the men said that they should get him a little apron because it looks like there's another Mason in the making."

Referring to the values so well represented by this story, Lynne Boehme says: "Maybe the men need to get out in the community and work with young men. Teach them to hunt and fish, golf, or whatever they enjoy doing. Maybe take them camping, get them involved in church activities or just spend some time not just talking but actually listening. There are a lot of boys out there who could use a good role model and the finest group of men I know are the Masons."