--- title: What My Dad Taught Me! description: We asked some of our Deering Banjos staff and players about something special their dad taught them and here are their answers! image: https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Mike-Crop-Bright-300x192.jpg --- [![Deering Banjos - The Great American Banjo Company](https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/hubfs/Logos/Deering%20Logo.png "Deering Banjos - The Great American Banjo Company")](https://www.deeringbanjos.com/) - [Hooks & Nuts](https://blog.deeringbanjos.com) - [Banjos](https://www.deeringbanjos.com/collections/banjos) - [Find A Dealer](https://www.deeringbanjos.com/apps/store-locator/) - [Support](https://help.deeringbanjos.com/knowledge) - [Accessories](https://www.deeringbanjos.com/collections/accessories) [American Authors](https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/topic/american-authors) [Artist Features](https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/topic/artist-features) [Dad](https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/topic/dad) [Email Articles](https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/topic/email-articles) [Fathers Day](https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/topic/fathers-day) [Inside Deering](https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/topic/inside-deering) [Nathan McEuen](https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/topic/nathan-mceuen) [Taught](https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/topic/taught) [Vinnie & The Hooligans](https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/topic/vinnie-the-hooligans) # What My Dad Taught Me! by [Jamie Deering](https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/author/jamie-deering) on June 16, 2016 ##### Share **We want to give a shout out and Happy Father's Day to all of the dad's out there!** What is something special your dad taught you that you think of to this day? Here are some of the answers from our family of Deering crew and artists....   **![Mike Pham Fathers Day](https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Mike-Crop-Bright-300x192.jpg?width=293&height=188&name=Mike-Crop-Bright-300x192.jpg)** **Mike Pham of [Vinnie & The Hooligans](http://vathmusic.org/):** "What did my dad always tell me.... my dad always told me "mom is always right". Also never force things...cause that is how you break stuff....and I always did that and learned the hard way, ahahah."   ![Jamie Latty and dad](https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Jamie-L-and-Dad-Final-Crop-300x189.jpg?width=293&height=185&name=Jamie-L-and-Dad-Final-Crop-300x189.jpg) **Jamie Latty, VP of Administration at Deering Banjos:** “My Dad taught me to be me and to not apologize for it, that nothing will ever be handed to me and that the car I drive will not be the measure of success. He also taught me how to get through life while wearing a suit as seldom as possible. Happy Fathers Day, Dad!”   **![James Adam Shelley of American Authors](https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/James-300x199.png?width=293&height=194&name=James-300x199.png)** **James Adam Shelley of [American Authors](http://www.weareamericanauthors.com/): ** "My father taught me how to be a good person and a good man.  My father taught me how to be kind, to love the people around me, to help people in need, and be understanding of everyone around me and the world.  I can only hope in my life I will be as great of a man as he is."   **![Jamie and Dad original](https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Jamie-and-Dad-original-225x300.jpg?width=219&height=292&name=Jamie-and-Dad-original-225x300.jpg)** **Jamie Deering, VP of Public Service & Outreach at Deering Banjos, daughter of Greg Deering:** "My dad taught me the old Henry Ford quote 'Whether you think you can, or you think you can't - you're right'. Watching he and my mom build Deering Banjos starting with literally nothing but a dream, I know this is really true. He never thought they couldn't, even when it seemed otherwise. He also taught me when out in the world whether camping or just spending an hour at the beach or park, to take care of the environment, to leave it better than you found it. I still do that to this day and his words always come to mind when I do! I learned from him to be active in, and appreciate all aspects of life. To give back more than one takes. And if I truly want to accomplish something and put in the work and passion, it can be done. "   **![David Bandrowski's Dad](https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Davids-Dad-241x300.png?width=230&height=286&name=Davids-Dad-241x300.png)** **David Bandrowski, Marketing Director at Deering Banjos.** "My father taught me to listen to other people’s opinions and value them. He also taught me that in rough times, keep a positive attitude, work hard, stay relaxed, and you’ll come out on the other side. The picture is of my dad eating a meal in the kitchen of his destroyed home after hurricane Katrina - and as always… with a smile."   **![Carolina Bridges](https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Carolina-216x300.jpg?width=194&height=269&name=Carolina-216x300.jpg)** **Carolina Bridges, Director of Public Relations at Deering Banjos** "My Dad taught me to work hard and not be afraid of trying new things. Because of his love and confidence he had in us, we were not afraid to fail; it was the “trying” that was important!"   ![Nathan and Dad](https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Nathan-300x273.jpg?width=293&height=267&name=Nathan-300x273.jpg) **[Nathan McEuen](http://www.nathanmceuen.com/), son of [John McEuen](http://www.johnmceuen.com/):** "My father taught me how to follow my dreams. He also taught me that with enough patience and practice, it's possible for a banjo player to get approved for a bank loan!"   ![Chad and Dad](https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Chad-and-Family-300x225.jpeg?width=293&height=220&name=Chad-and-Family-300x225.jpeg) Chad on the left with his father Bob, and brothers Chris and Clinton. **Chad Kopotic, Quality Control Manager at Deering Banjos:** "A little something my Dad taught me is 95% of doing a job well is preparation.   The remaining  5% is easy when properly prepared.  This thought carries with me as I work on any project.  I try to think through what I'll need to complete the task and have it ready to go, so I don't have to pause and try to find what's missing. "   **![Anja Kruger and her dad, Jens Kruger](https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Anja-and-Jens-225x300.jpg?width=204&height=272&name=Anja-and-Jens-225x300.jpg)** **Anja Kruger, Daughter of [Jens Kruger](http://krugerbrothers.com/):** "My dad taught me to be yourself because everyone else is already taken. I believe that is a quote from someone else, but Jens always told me that because when you're young you always want to be like someone else. His words would be a reminder to just always be yourself no matter what. He would also say to never stop dreaming. If you don't dream it, it will never happen! Sometimes that can take hours or days, and sometimes it takes years, but never forget to dream!"   ## Tell us something that your dad taught you in the comments!     ## COMMENTS [![Kristin Scott Benson chooses the Deering Golden Series banjos](https://hubspot-no-cache-na2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/cta/default/1901150/e1746c92-ee50-47bc-9b8c-8cc1edf426a2.png)](https://hubspot-cta-redirect-na2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/cta/redirect/1901150/e1746c92-ee50-47bc-9b8c-8cc1edf426a2) [![New call-to-action](https://hubspot-no-cache-na2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/cta/default/1901150/1753c9a8-491f-4b2b-b9ef-50457c195d9b.png)](https://hubspot-cta-redirect-na2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/cta/redirect/1901150/1753c9a8-491f-4b2b-b9ef-50457c195d9b) ## Search Blog Post ## YOU MAY ALSO LIKE ### sign up for our newsletter ### Popular Posts [The Four Essential 5-String Banjo Rolls](https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/the-four-essential-5-string-banjo-rolls) [Ukulele Sizes – Soprano, Concert, Tenor & Baritone](https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/ukulele-sizes) [Celtic Tunes on the 5 String Banjo](https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/celtic-tunes-on-the-5-string-banjo) [Learn Melodic Style 5 String Banjo With G Scales](https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/learn-melodic-style-5-string-banjo-g-scales) [How To Wear Banjo Picks](https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/how-to-wear-banjo-picks) ### Recent Posts [Steve Martin & Alison Brown release new music](https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/steve-martin-alison-brown-timobrien) [The Artisan Elephant Goodtime Banjo - 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[HOME](https://www.deeringbanjos.com/) - [BANJOS](https://www.deeringbanjos.com/collections/banjos) - [FIND A DEALER](https://www.deeringbanjos.com/apps/store-locator/) - [ARTISTS](https://www.deeringbanjos.com/blogs/deering-artists) - [CONTACT US](https://www.deeringbanjos.com/pages/contact-us) ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Jamie Deering", "url" : "https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/author/jamie-deering" }, "datePublished" : "2016-06-16T22:55:43.000Z", "headline" : "What My Dad Taught Me!", "image" : [ "https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Mike-Crop-Bright-300x192.jpg" ], "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/what-my-dad-taught-me", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "url" : "https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/hubfs/Logos/deering-logo-green-406325-800x163.png" }, "name" : "Deering Banjos" } } ```