But for Iranians, Rooz-E Pedar (Persian for "father's day") is also a time when the community recognizes fathers who have contributed to society.

And that celebration has been kept alive in Cupertino by immigrants from the Old World. On June 8, dozens of Iranian families filled the banquet room at the Cupertino Senior Center.

Before the fathers were called on to be honored, guest speaker Bohman Marzbani from Australia gave a speech about how a positive attitude is the secret to success and said that each of the fathers in the crowd had adopted that kind of mentality to accomplish great deeds for the community.

Fariba Nejat of the Iranian Federated Women's Club, who was one of the hosts of the night's events, said, "These men have all been great contibutors to our community."

The first father to be honored was Majid Khostavan, an aspiring musician who put aside his own music career to focus on being a father. He has contributed to the careers of several musicians in the local Iranian community.

The second father recognized was Jahanshah Javid, a journalist from Iran who made his home in Silicon Valley and started the online magazine Iranian.com.

"I am more of an indirect contributor to the community," said Javid. "My website lets people find a forum to exchange views that might bring people together."

Iranian.com gives updates to the Iranian community around the world, as well as offering a space to voice their opinions and common interests. Receiving more than one million visits each month, the website has been considered to be one of the biggest in the entire Iranian community.

Next to be recognized was Farooz Sadigh, a businessman who helped host the event.

Since the festivities were held mostly in Farsi—the language spoken in Iran—Sadigh helped translate for the non-Farsi speakers.

Sadigh has studied in Iran, Britain and the United States and has contributed much of his time assisting with events in the local Iranian community. The father of two is also a disc jockey and a drummer.

After Sadigh, Ron Houge, an American who married into the community, was honored.

Nejat introduced Houge as a person who had been "like a father to many people."

Houge has worked with several programs in the Iranian community and also teaches dance classes with his wife at the senior center.

The final honoree was Homayoun Asadipour, a businessman who hosts Iranian television programs that reach a wide audience of Iranians.

"I lease airtime for Iranian programs every morning from 9 to 9:30," he said. He hopes his programs will help unite Iranian people.

Asadipour also said he has done some work in the fight against terrorism. "That is one thing that I am very proud of," he said.

The Iran native and father of two said he hopes to one day return to his home country.

After the ceremony, the festivities began.

While the guests enjoyed a banquet, Khostavan's son, Amir, played an impromptu piece on the grand piano and concluded to roaring applause.

Then Sadigh made his way to the DJ booth. The lights dimmed, and professional belly dancer Sabiba entered the room. A winding melody sailed over loud, crashing drums, and the audience began to clap along with the beat as she wove her way through the crowd.

"This kind of celebration is very important for rewarding the people for their hard work," said Ardeshir Marzbani, who had traveled all the way from France to attend the ceremony.

The celebration carried on late into the night.