Finland honours 26 fathers for their work raising children

Finland is marking Father’s Day on Sunday, with 26 fathers set to receive state honours for their work raising children and young people, Yle reports. President Alexander Stubb has awarded the honours for the second time. The medals will be presented at a ceremony at Säätytalo, an event venue in Helsinki.

The recipients are an average of 63 years old, according to a statement from the Family Federation of Finland. They come from different parts of the country, and some are also grandfathers.

Father’s Day is celebrated in Finland on the second Sunday of November and became an official flag-flying day in 2019. Statistics Finland says the country has 1.3 million fathers. Men are an average of 32.4 years old when their first biological child is born. According to the agency’s figures for last year, grandfathers were an average of 64 when they welcomed a grandchild.