The following is a new article from StamfordAdvocate.com:
WWE’s Triple H rallies fathers, mentors in Stamford
STAMFORD — About 300 people gathered at the Boys & Girls Club Friday evening to meet WWE wrestler Paul Levesque — better known by his in-the-ring moniker Triple H — during a rally in which he discussed the rewards and challenges of being a good father and mentor.
The event was inspired by President Barack Obama’s Fatherhood and Mentoring Initiative, which Obama unveiled in June 2010 in an effort to open dialogue about the responsibilities surrounding fatherhood.
“To me, this is about kids and families, not about whose name is on it,” said Levesque, who is the son-in-law of WWE Chairman Vince McMahon and Vince’s wife, Linda, who was the Republican candidate for U.S. Senate in 2010.
“This isn’t political. This is about doing something right for the cause,” Levesque said. “I went to the Boys Club when I was a kid, and my father-in-law, Vince, went to the Boys Club.
“It’s great for the kids. It’s great to be able to come here in this role, and say hi to a couple hundred screaming maniacs,” Levesque said. “Really, in essence, this is what the WWE is all about. We kind of have this internal slogan with the company that what we do for a living is put smiles on people’s faces. And when I think of that statement, I think about kids. Because, when you put a smile on a kid’s face, you put a smile on the face of everybody around them.”
Eight-year-old Sophia Acosta came to the event with her father, John Arias, and her 2 1/2-year-old sister, Paula.
“I really like having my dad and my sister here,” said Sophia, a third-grader at Westover Magnet Elementary School. “I really want to enjoy this.”
Her father said the Friday evening outing was an opportunity for daddy-daughter time with the two girls.
“To me, you ought to spend the most time you can with your children,” Arias said. “Any time you can spend with them, do it.”
Levesque said he knows a thing or two about father-daughter time. He and his wife have three daughters, who range in age from six months to 4 1/2 years old.
“With my kids, I see the importance every day of what it means to them,” he said. “I mean, they don’t care about the toys and all that, they just want to spend time with us.
They care about time. They want you to read to them, to go outside and play with them. They just want people to pay attention to them, and to let them know that they’re special too.”
When asked why Triple H is the right person to act as a poster child for mentoring for the night, Levesque said he didn’t have an answer.
“Maybe for some of those parents or guardians who wouldn’t necessarily have done something with their kid at this time tonight, but thought to themselves, `Wow my kids might really like this,’ and maybe that’s the kind of thing that once they’re here, and they hear about how important it is to just spend time with the kids, they’ll realize that maybe they should do this more often,” he said. “Maybe it makes a difference.”
