In the 84 years of the Father’s Day lunch, never has a father-son duo been honored. That changed on Thursday when Mark and Jarrod Weber received father of the year honors.
Mark Weber is the former chief executive officer of LVMH Inc., where he oversaw the U.S., as well as the former CEO of PVH Corp. He now is an author and radio and podcast host on iHeartMedia where he shares lessons on business, fashion and life.
Apparently those lessons were useful to his son Jarrod, global president of sports and lifestyle at Authentic Brands Group. The younger Weber joined Authentic in 2014 after a career as an attorney at Katten Muchin Rosenman.
On Thursday, the Webers were joined by David Greenberg, chairman of L’Oréal USA, as this year’s fathers of the year.
Mark Weber’s second son, Jesse Weber, an attorney, TV news anchor and legal analyst, presented the awards to his father and brother. He said his brother, who is seven years older, often acted as a parental figure to him. Now that they both have children of their own, he looks to Jarrod Weber as a role model for always being there for his sons.
In accepting the award, Jarrod Weber said: “If I ever became a movie producer, a director, an actor, and I won the Academy Award, today is the pinnacle, because there’s no role I could ever play that’s more important than being a father to my two little boys.”
He went on to say that in his high school yearbook, he wrote that his goal in life “was to emulate the character of my mom, the wisdom of my dad, and still manage to be myself.” He said he inherited his confidence and his sense of style from his mother while his father was the epitome of “tough love.” And although he may not have realized it at the time, that “provided a grit and toughness that I needed.”
Mark Weber said because he was brought up in the city projects, “I wasn’t supposed to have this career. I had no mentors. I had no one to look after me, I had no one to guide me. My mother loved me like crazy and taught me right from wrong, and my father was the sweetest guy in the world. When I got a hit playing baseball, you’d see he’d be the one crying. But I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for people teaching me, showing an interest.” He singled out Stanley Gillette, a president of PVH, as key to his growth.
But despite his career success, he said he always spent as much time as possible with his family. “I went to every everything. I was always there for the boys, to guide them, to root for them.” And he brought them into board meetings and other industry events to “give them a chance.”
“But the reality is, I was selfish. I was doing it for me. I enjoyed it.”
Greenberg’s two sons, Ethan and Henry, presented him with his award, thanking him for always taking their phone calls that usually last 45 minutes where they “talk in circles, asking for the exact same advice on the same decisions, hoping for a different answer each time.” But at the end of the day, “we always do exactly what our dad suggests anyway,” said Henry Greenberg. And they singled out their father’s “integrity, kindness, humility, and respect that have shaped not only his career, but our lives.”
In accepting the award, Greenberg said he considers fatherhood a lesson in humility, where the goal, “rather than perfection, is just to do a little bit better tomorrow than you did yesterday.”
Also honored was Je’Donne Williams, a life coach and All Star Dad selected from submissions from family members, friends and community leaders across the country. The letter from his son Jaden, who presented his father with the award, won him the contest. Although Je’Donne Williams grew up without a strong father figure, he broke that cycle, his son wrote, adding: “The biggest thing you taught me was faith, integrity and how to be a good man overall. You showed me why having character as a man matters, and with that character, how you treat people matters, and staying grounded in God matters, too.”
In his acceptance speech, Je’Donne Williams honored all fathers who take the time to be there for their children, despite the challenges.
This year also marked the 25th anniversary of the Father’s Day fire in Astoria, N.Y., when a propane explosion caused a hardware store to collapse, killing three New York firefighters: Harry S. Ford of Rescue 4, Brian D. Fahey of Rescue 4, and John J. Downing of Ladder 163. The wives of the lost men were recognized for their husbands’ bravery and sacrifice during the luncheon.
The event also served as a fundraiser for the Big Brothers Big Sisters of America. For more than 80 years, the National Father’s Day/Mother’s Day Council has donated more than $40 million to a variety of charities.
