______________ WWD, FRIDAY,JUNE 19, 200913

IIiIWWD.COM

~ Save the ChUrl,..",

FATHER,
YEARAWA

r Dedications to Dads
ALTHOUGH THE ROOM WAS CROWDED WITH LUMINARIES
from sports, the military, television news and the apparel industry,
it was a teacher from Cape May Court House, N.J., who stole the
show at the 68th annual Father of the Year Awards at the Sheraton
Hotel on Thursday.
The story of Rob Wunder, the Ashok Sani All-Star Dad, prompted ~>
Duke University men's basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski to say: "The
MVP of this dais is Rob, who has shown us the meaning of true com-
mitment and love." Wunder, who received the award after his wife
wrote an essay to Men's Health magazine, gave up his career to care
for his son,. who was paralyzed from the neck down after diving into a
swimming pool. Wunder is sleeping on an air mattress in his son Rob's
dorm room at Temple University and gets up every two hours to turn
him in bed at night so he doesn't get bedsores. He shrugged off the sac-
rifice: "What do you say, three more years and then grad school?"
In addition to Wunder and Krzyzewski, the other honorees
were motor sports racing legend AI Unser Sr, ABC News' George
Stephanopoulos, Loews Corp. chairman Jonathan Tisch and Gen.
David Petraeus, commander of the U.S. Central Command of the U.S.
Army. Petraeus had a meeting at the White House and couldn't attend,
but sent Major Gen. Kenneth Dowd in his stead. Dowd said that for
military fathers, it's important to cherish the time they have with their
families. "We're deployed a lot and we have to work the family piece
when we're back," he said.
Macy's Inc. chairman, president and chief executive officer Terry
Lundgren made a surprise appearance at the luncheon to honor Ronny
Wurtzburger, president of Peerless Clothing, who received both Father
of the Year honors as well as the Milton Margolis Humanitarian Award.
Lundgren said he could attest to Wurtzburger's love of family since
the Peerless executive often leaves meetings at Macy's to attend his
grandchildren's sporting events. In his speech, Wurtzburger told sto-
ries about his childhood and introduced his extended family, many of
whom were in attendance at the event. This prompted Krzyzewski to
joke: "Ron, it was nice of you to invite us to your family reunion."
Proceeds from the luncheon went to Save the Children.
- Jean E. Palmieri