Greatest Dad Contest

On June 17, 2005, the Colom Foundation, Alpha Phi Alpha Service Fraternity, and Cumulus Broadcasting sponsored the Second Annual Greatest Dad Contest. The contest was designed to give local children a way to show their appreciation for the significance of their fathers in their lives.

The 2005 Greatest Dad winner was James Granderson, 52, a retired teacher and varsity basketball coach from West Lowndes High School in Lowndes County, Mississippi. Granderson was nominated by his daughter, Reba.

"My dad was always there for us when I was coming up," James Granderson said. "I always believed that if I could do half the things for my children that my father did for me, then they would be all right."

"When I was coaching, sometimes I would be gone from the house before my kids would wake up, and I wouldn't get back home until they were already asleep," he said. "But when I was there and I had the chance spend time with them, I tried to spend quality time with them, showing them love and teaching them."

"More and more people are starting to realize the impact a good father can have on a child," said Wilbur O. Colom, president of The Colom Foundation. "We wanted to give voice to the deep appreciation all people feel toward their fathers."

Read the winning essay.