Our 343rd Dad in the Limelight is Bobby Anzaldi, contestant on the new TNT Television reality show 72 Hours which airs on Thursday nights at 9PM EST. I want to thank Bobby for being a part of this series. It has been great getting connected with him and now sharing him with all of you.
1) Tell me about yourself, (as well as how you are in the limelight)
When I tell most people that I am a 14 year Law Enforcement veteran, I am quickly met with disbelief; however, for my 21st birthday I was duly sworn into office as a police officer. Since then I have been assigned a vast number of duties throughout my career which have included: Tactical Officer, Detective, Evidence Technician, Juvenile Officer, Gang Specialist, and Crisis Intervention Officer. My career is quite rewarding and has sculpted my innate need to help others.
I recently (5/18/2013) graduated from Concordia University in Chicago, Illinois. I was awarded a Bachelor of the Arts degree in Organizational Management, and also completed the necessary classes to achieve a certificate in Human Resource Management. The adult academic journey was very stressful. During my degree seeking year and a half, I worked 70+ hours a week, fathered my son, maintained a stable dating relationship with my fiancée, and still continued to attend the gym regularly. The reward, though, was amazing and the commencement was the representation of enormous struggle and work, as I graduated cum laude (3.70 GPA). I am currently seeking higher education options at a State University which will allow me the opportunity to graduate with an MPA (Master’s of Public Administration) and JD (Juris Doctor, i.e. law degree).
When I am not out saving the world or studying how to change it, I am in the gym. Around the age 25 I began weightlifting. Once my generic interest was replaced by outlandish enthusiasm, I began to learn about body mechanics, diet, and supplementation. This new knowledge then created a whole new and healthier way of life for me. I stopped doing small things at first, like eating fast food, and then began preparing and weighing my meals by ounces and nutritional value (carbs, protein, fat). Over the course of the last 10 years I managed to lose 30 pounds, and then slowly pack on 55 pounds of muscle while keeping my body fat percentage at 9%. The gym has become my release for stress and aggravation, and it is my goal to one day, in the near distant future, to compete in a semi professional bodybuilding competition.
I came to be in the limelight through a new adventure series that is/will be televised on TNT named 72 HOURS. The premise of the show is as follows: 3 teams of three strangers are placed into the most remote locations of the world with only 1 bottle of water a piece and a GPS device. Each team must then come together with the common goal of being first to the finish line to win $100,000. The experience was legitimately “once in a lifetime” and was one of the most exciting and rewarding accomplishments of my life.
2) Tell me about your family.
My immediately family currently consists of my fiancée, Natalie, and my son, Bobby III. Natalie is 25 and a sonographer at a prestigious hospital in Chicago. She, like me, started her career at 21 and has quickly excelled in her field. She has been tapped for several planning and a development committee at her work, and is legitimately a “one man show” for several hours of her daily work schedule. She truly is one of the smartest people that I know and shares the same ideology, goals, values, and sense of humor as me. Our big day is in June (2013) and I honestly cannot wait to be married to her and to get started on our lives together.
Bobby III obviously shares my name but is more named after my father than me. He is what one would call an “old soul.” Bobby has the amazing ability to make adults feel inept as he has the unintentional sarcasm of a 50 year old at the prime age of 8. Often I find myself shrugging my shoulders at his responses because he’s generally correct. I then have to explain to him afterward, that he needs to work on developing his delivery mechanism as he can sometimes be perceived as cocky. His response is typically: “But dad, I was right,” and he usually is, but manners are a huge part of our household as is respect for one’s elders. He is in the top percentage of his class for verbal acuity, reading comprehension, and physical fitness. Bobby loves to golf and play tennis, but most importantly is the most compassionate and loving kid that I have ever known.
3) What has been the largest challenge you have had in being a father?
Challenges and problems, to me, are opportunities in work clothes. I tend to take each challenge at its face value and try to make a life lesson out of it. That being said, obviously being a single father is exceedingly difficult, and since time is a nonrenewable resource the allocation of it usually is the biggest challenge. I make sure to spend copious amounts of time with my son and show him the example of what it means to have a strong father. Regardless of whether we take the time to go to the park, play a board game, walk the dog, read a book together, or just take 5 and relax on the couch I deem it necessary to show him that I’m always there for him, no matter what. I do this because I want him to be able to come to me in search of guidance with his problems, big or small.
4) What advice would you give to other fathers?
Fathering a child is not nearly as easy as it is to become a father. Take the time to listen to your child (verbally and nonverbally), learn what makes them tick and then nurture and encourage their interests, regardless of any outside preconceived ideology. Remember, your child is your legacy and after you’re a distant memory they continue to leave your thumbprint on the world.
5) Seeing that you are in the limelight, how have you come to balance parenthood and outside life?
My approach to this is simple, ride the wave while it lasts, and have fun doing it. I know that the stopwatch which is timing my 15 minutes of fame has started so I make the most out of each new door that the ‘limelight’ has provides. I DVR and record my speaking and video events. I then gather my son and fiancée and we sit together and watch or listen to the publication. I do this with them because I feel that since they were not there to experience the adventure with me, I want to share my reaction to the experiences with them exclusively. I try to get them as involved as I possibly can and try to take them with whenever possible.
6) What have you learned from the fathers that you have interacted with?
To be truthful, although it might sound horrible, I have learned that I want to be nothing like them or like the stereotypical father. I have watched as males who claim to be “men” leave their children, don’t support them (be it financially, physically, emotionally), and set poor examples for them. It actually infuriates me to watch a father dodge an opportunity to play or teach their child at the first moment one of their friends offers them the possibility to “hang out.” Thanks to fathers like this we now have a generation of children who do not know what it is like to have a “father” and whose social norms are so far out there that they believe violence solves all problems, and why shouldn’t they? These children haven’t been taught any differently. It absolutely repulses me.
Being the product of a family where my father IS the patriarch, I feel that I have large shoes to fill. I believe that his strong examples, which are still displayed, are what have pushed me in a positive direction and have made me the well rounded individual which, I hope, I am. I only wish that I can do the same for my son.
7) What else would you share regarding your experiences as a father thus far?
Laugh!! Every day brings with it new problems, opportunities, and goals. Learn to have fun living life and teach your children to do the same. Often times we get so involved in schedules and who needs to be where at what time that we forget about simple things like laughter and communication. Whether it be at the end of the night or over dinner, I always ask my son about his day and ask him to tell me about the best part of it and the worst part of it. Then we take a few moments to talk about it and then end the evening with a smile, chuckle, and an “I love you.”
8) What have been the most memorable experiences that you have had thus far as a parent?
There have been so many memorable experiences that I find it hard to narrow them down. From all of his “firsts” to all of his thirds and fourths, they’re all cataloged in my mind (and on video) and cause me to reflect all of the time. I cannot drive past something or use a word without thinking of my little guy. All that I really know is that every day he makes me proud and because of him I feel a sense of accomplishment. So HE truly is my most memorable experience.
Find Bobby on Facebook here – https://www.facebook.com/bob.b.junior?fref=ts
If you have any questions for Bobby, please leave a comment here and I will make sure that he gets them so that he may be able to respond!
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