Although much of the world celebrated Father’s Day on Sunday, in the UAE it falls on a Wednesday. We ask some of the people shaping the country’s cultural landscape – in the realms of film, social media, innovation and business – to share the effect their fathers had on their lives and achievements
Michelle Nickelson, from the United States, is the managing director of Mena CineFinance and cochairwoman of Women in Film and Television UAE. She divides her time between Abu Dhabi and Los Angeles. Her dad, Carl Nickelson, was an aircraft engineer.
“My father was the eldest of 10 children, born into a poor family. He finished eighth grade then quit school to work and help support his younger siblings. As a young man, he joined the United States Marine Corps and got an education. He was exemplary in tests and they soon figured out that he had a genius IQ. He became an engineer and was eventually recruited by the US intelligence community to work on the SR-71 Blackbird long-range strategic reconnaissance aircraft. As children, we had a pretty exciting life and travelled a lot, as well as living outside the US. For someone who had never been to high school, let alone college, he did OK. I remember him reciting the quote, attributed to Henry David Thoreau: “Most men lead lives of quiet desperation.” My father was adamant that I should live my life on my terms, not someone else’s. He encouraged me to dream about what I wanted, then go after it; to accept that when you do this, sometimes you lose friends who don’t understand you; and that, ultimately, only you can be responsible for your own destiny. If you give this responsibility to someone else, you may end up regretting what could have been. This has been a driving factor in my life.
Jonathan Labin is the German-Venezuelan managing director of Facebook for the Middle East, North Africa and Pakistan. His father, Hans-Peter Labin, was the chief executive of Görtz, one of Germany's biggest shoe retailers.
For the past 20 years, during Christmas my father has given me, my brother and sister a handwritten letter reviewing the past year. The letter highlights his thoughts on the most significant moments of that year. He writes about his hopes for me and what he believes I have the potential to achieve. I look forward to this letter every year. It shows that he’s thinking about me and my life and, despite the distance, he always has me on his mind. It strengthens my personal connection with my dad and reminds me of what’s really important in life. I get the chance to gain from the depth of his experience and to reflect on all things past, present and future. It’s the best Christmas present you could wish for.
Sana Bagersh is the chief executive of Abu Dhabi marketing agency BrandMoxie, managing editor of Abu Dhabi cultural-community magazine Tempo and founder of entrepreneur organisation Tamakkan. Her Yemeni father, Abubaker Bagersh, worked with his father as a coffee exporter in Ethiopia. He died in 1987 in a car accident.
My father was a flame that guided me and my five brothers throughout our lives. I come from a very conservative family. As soon as I graduated from a British high school in Addis Ababa, my extended family started talking about me getting married. I had suitors waiting from very good families but my father wanted me to be the master of my own destiny. He broke completely with tradition, saying: “Whatever I provide for my sons, I will provide to my daughter. I want her to go to America and get her degree.” For a long time, I chaired the Women Achieve women’s-empowerment platform at AmCham [American Chamber of Commerce Abu Dhabi]. Four years ago, through that platform, I crafted a charter of 11 mandates to empower women, providing equal opportunities, equal training and enabling women to serve on boards. This has since been signed by more than 70 companies. It’s a ripple effect that started with my father.
Farrukh Naeem is a social-media strategist and an influential tech reviewer in Abu Dhabi. His late father, Asrare Haque Naeem, was a civil engineer from India who spent half his life in the UAE.
My father saw very difficult times in his career – but every time support arrived from the most unexpected places. Once, when he was working in a remote location, the company didn’t pay salaries and he didn’t have enough money to get back home. Luckily, he met someone he knew in the railways, who arranged for him to travel home. When he needed a heart surgery, he didn’t have enough money for the operation, yet the doctors arranged for his operation to be funded by the hospital. After he passed away in 2008, so many people in India told us how he used to secretly support them, without ever talking about it. Even his family did not know of his humanitarian deeds. Many times I have livestreamed from beside my father’s grave in Baniyas, urging thousands of my connections to reflect on the reality of life, the fact that it will one day end, and to make sure that it is meaningful and continues to benefit others long after we are gone. This is my father’s legacy.
Nawal Al Hosany, from the UAE, is executive director of sustainability and brand at Masdar. Her late father was Khalifa Al Hosany.
When we receive advice as children, we seldom recognise how meaningful it really is. But there is one piece of advice that I was given as a child by my father that has been an anchor for me: “Wherever you are, whatever you do, keep in mind that you are an ambassador of your family and your country.” He would say that to me before I made any decision that would affect my life. His words helped shape the path I chose for myself as a student and as a professional today. My father was a warm, loving and empowering man who supported each of his 12 children equally throughout our education, careers and personal life. He welcomed our different ideas with an open mind, as long as they impacted the wellness of our society, especially if they had a way of giving back to the community. My favourite memory of my father is my first trip to the United Kingdom. Travelling alone for the first time, excitement took over as I rushed to get past immigration and to the plane. I hadn’t even looked back to check if my family was still at the gate. My father called out my name amid the haste and made me realise that he was still standing there, waving goodbye. In that moment, I felt immense pride and support from my father and fully understood his advice.
Celebrity tributes to dad
Halle Berry, actress
“I wish my dad was still here so I could tell him that I forgive him and that I love him. We didn’t have much of a relationship but with age I’ve realised he did the best he could with what he was given.”
Bono, U2 frontman
“Here, in the 1960s, was a Catholic who drove his Protestant wife and two kids to a little Church of Ireland chapel in Finglas every Sunday, attended mass in the Catholic church, then returned to pick them up. He understood that God and religion were two separate concepts, and that one could keep you away from the other. ‘Wise’ is another word for his no-nonsense view of the world.”
Richard Branson, founder of Virgin Group
“One of the most resounding lessons I learnt from my father was the importance of dreaming. My dad didn’t get to live out his dream to be an archaeologist – he followed in the footsteps of his father, a High Court judge. Dad struggled in his career as a barrister but instead of mourning a life he could have lived, he made sure I learnt from his mistakes, giving me remarkably free rein to find my own way and live out my dreams. Even when I messed up, which I have done many times throughout my life, he always stood by me, knowing that by showing me unconditional love, I would become the man I was meant to be.”
Bill Gates, co-founder of Microsoft
“Dad is a retired attorney and I think I inherited his lawyer’s approach to analysing problems. I spent a lot of Sunday dinners listening to dad talk about work with my mum, who was very involved in the United Way [a coalition of charitable organisations] in Seattle and at the national and international levels. They might discuss a case dad was working on or an issue that mum was dealing with through the United Way. Eventually, I started joining in the conversations, and they were very influential years later when I got involved in philanthropy.”
artslife@thenational.ae