A Father's Day wish: 'Keep smiling, search for a cure'

CLEVELAND - My father always seemed to have the right answers, and the older I get, the more I realize this.

He wasn't big on offering advice, he wasn't the guy to tell you, "I love you," but when I needed him, he was always there.

My dad Mike was everybody's best friend, compassionate co-worker, devoted husband, favorite uncle.

He was funny, warm hearted, comical, but when I needed advice or had to be taught a lesson, his tone was filled with straight forward common sense. And if you didn't get the message the first time, as he would always say, "you'd better head for the hills."

My sister Ava and I were blessed, our father gave us all the love and resources we needed to succeed, how we both wish we could still love him back in-person.

My dad didn't make a ton of money, and even if he did, I was always certain he would still try to get the most out everything he owned.

He was that classic "do-it-yourself guy." He did his own plumbing, oil changes, brake jobs, body work, refinishing, painting and landscaping, up until the year we lost him to pancreatic cancer in January 1999.

One of the last things my father told me from his hospital bed was "keep smiling, search for a cure."

One of the ways I try to make good on his advice, is to take part in the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network's PurpleStride Cleveland fundraising event, held at the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo.

This year, the event takes place on Fathers Day weekend, Saturday, June 16, 7 to 11 a.m.

The event is always a day of inspiration and hope -- a 5K run and 1-mile walk to raise research dollars in the fight against pancreatic cancer.

The reason it's so critical more research dollars are raised is because pancreatic cancer's five-year survival rate is still in the single digits, at just 6 percent -- this compared to a 67 percent overall five-year survival rate for all other cancers.

It's a cancer that has few early symptoms, and is still difficult to detect in its early stages. When my father finally started to show symptoms of the disease, it was too late.

Doctors gave my dad just three months to live, he courageously fought for eight months. He even allowed me to take him on a father/son trip to Cancun, just seven weeks before we lost him.

Doctors told me to keep dad on an extremely limited diet during the trip, but come-on, two Greeks sitting along the Caribbean Sea?

We danced on the beach, ate cake, had a few drinks and shared a lifetime of stories.

I'd like to hear some stories about your father. Post some lines right here on newsnet5.com, or you can share them on my Facebook page .

I think about my father nearly every day, but especially on Father's Day.

The memories make me miss him, make me smile, confirm what a great man he was and how I'll spend the rest of my life trying to live up to his standards.

Dad, you're the best. I smile every time I think of you, and yes, a cure will be found.

To make a donation to the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network or to get more information on PurpleStride Cleveland 2012 click on this website .