There’s a double celebration taking place this weekend, both deserving of recognition.

Saturday, June 14, marks the 237th anniversary that the flag with its stars and stripes was adopted by Congress. Reportedly, a school teacher in the mid-1880s required students to write essays about the American flag. He went on to promote the idea of setting aside a day for recognizing the flag’s history and significance. Another school teacher had a similar idea, and ultimately their ideas caught on.

President Woodrow Wilson declared the celebration official in 1916.

Our flag is not merely a piece of fabric designed with the bold 50 stars and 13 stripes. It’s the symbol of what took place to form the country, what’s happened since and the values that bring and hold the people together. Values such as devotion, honesty, integrity and respect, to name a few.

Speaking of which, these are qualities that can also be found in the reason for the second celebration: the men who are dads. Father’s Day on Sunday, June 15, is the time to honor those men who take seriously their responsibility of rearing their children.

Being able to reproduce is not enough. In fact, there ought to be a way to prevent anyone from being a parent if they won’t met certain criteria, such as compassion, intelligence, patience and a willingness to commit to protecting the joy they helped bring into the world.

The man who evades such responsibility is a sorry soul, indeed. Worse, such neglect has been shown to have long-lasting detrimental effects in children.

The man who embraces the duty is worthy and deserving to be called “Dad.”