Looking through the doughnut hole

One way to get fathers to go to school with their children is to promise them doughnuts.

That’s what Braden River Elementary School did Friday with its annual Doughnuts for Dads event.

Members of the PTO brought 34 dozen Krispy Kreme doughnuts, a picture of perfection in their glazed, sweet fluffiness.

Faces of dads and sons and daughters alike lit up as they passed through the line and picked out their doughnuts.

For dads, it was usually the kind with the chocolate glaze on top and the cream filling.

For the children, it was anything with an orange glaze or tons of sprinkles. But beyond the doughnuts, what I observed was really heart-warming. It was a window into the heart of families, the love between parent and child, and how life goes on despite a bad economy, wars, joblessness and too many murders in our community.

Capt. Tom Albrecht is assigned to MacDill Air Force Base and is preparing for overseas deployment.

It will be his third since the terrorist attacks of 9/11, when two of his friends died at the World Trade Center.

His wife, Tia, is president of the Braden River PTO, now serving her second term.

The family moved to East Manatee from New York state. “We love this area,” Capt. Albrecht said, holding his young son Nathan Roger.

Also among the crowd was Mike Meiser, who works from home at River Club in the telecommunications business.

“This is a great way for a lot of parents to be late for work,” Meiser said.

Actually, it’s probably one of the best reasons to be late for work. After all, what’s more important than devoting a little time to our children?

Meiser had an interesting observation on the economy. He watched his company’s revenues go down drastically as the country convulsed through a terrible recession. But now he’s seeing employers placing orders for telephones again.

Companies don’t order phones for empty desks. So maybe there’s more hiring coming in the near future. We can hope.

Randy Mungillo, principal of Braden River, said the Doughnuts for Dads event is based on a concept from former Tampa Bay Bucs coach Tony Dungy.

“The kids love sitting down and eating a doughnut with their dads. Then the next thing you know, they go and find their friends and introduce them to their dads. Then the dads meet each other and talk,” Mungillo said.

Asked about the Albrecht family, Mungillo was aware of Tom’s impending deployment.

“We will wrap Tia up with love and make sure she and the boys are well taken care while he’s away,” Mungillo said.