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Praise Jesus THIS man has heard His voice and knows when to follow orders. GLORY!!
Paddle-maker on a mission from God
Don't do it out of anger. Don't swing too hard and always hug your child when you're done — when you're done spanking him or her using a wooden paddle signed, "Love Joey."
New Kensington resident Joey Salvati, 39, a father of two, was in the shower about a month ago when he first heard God speak to him about the matter. Whether it was an external or internal voice, he wasn't sure. He tried to ignore it, but it kept coming back, day after day, until he realized he had to do something about it. The message was for Salvati to make wooden paddles for corporal punishment and give them to parents who need help disciplining their children.
"I'm just going all by my heart," he said this week while sitting at his kitchen table. In the next room his mother watched TV in complete disagreement with everything he was doing, certain he would go to jail because of it. Upstairs his son worried that his friends at school would label his father a loon.
Salvati, on the other hand, did not have those concerns. His objective was to obey the message. "I believe it was given to me, and I'm sure I'll be buying a lot of timber," he said confident that many parents will agree with what he's doing. Many people disagree, however, including authorities on child discipline. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, "Spanking has negative consequences and is no more effective than other forms of discipline. In fact, there's often a gray area between when spanking ends and child abuse begins."
Appointment slips are available on the site for parents to download and have their children fill out when they misbehave. Parents are supposed to explain to the child what he or she did wrong and that the child is being punished out of love. "This is all out of love," Salvati said. "A bad person is going to use a baseball bat." Although he has given about 25 paddles away stamped with the words, "Love Joey," above the handle, Salvati said he is going to start stamping the paddles with a red anti-abuse message that reads, "Never in anger."
Salvati said he did not spank his children while they were growing up —until recently. About a week ago, Salvati said his 15-year-old son, Bobby, was disrespectful and was forced to fill out an appointment slip and endure one swat. "I told (Bobby), 'I'll be damned if I'm going to tell other parents to do this and not use it on you,'" Salvati said. Embarrassed about the incident, Bobby said he's less inclined to misbehave again although his father didn't swing too hard.
"I think it's a good idea because it changes me," Bobby said. Seeing a growing problem with children, Salvati, who said he was spanked on occasion but never abused, thinks parents should give up on the popular Time-Out discipline procedure and take a harder line with their children. Playing on a well-know proverb, Salvati said, "Spare the rod and you spoil the child."
To order a paddle
New Kensington resident Joey Salvati has made 85 wooden paddles intended only for disciplining children and is giving them away. The paddles, which weigh about 13 ounces and are about 2 ½ feet long, can be ordered Online at www.Spare-Rods.com at a cost of $5.75 for shipping. Information about using the paddles is included in the Web site. Salvati also has been giving the paddles away in the former Burger King parking lot along Tarentum Bridge Road. He has no plans to ever sell the paddles.
Don't do it out of anger. Don't swing too hard and always hug your child when you're done — when you're done spanking him or her using a wooden paddle signed, "Love Joey."
New Kensington resident Joey Salvati, 39, a father of two, was in the shower about a month ago when he first heard God speak to him about the matter. Whether it was an external or internal voice, he wasn't sure. He tried to ignore it, but it kept coming back, day after day, until he realized he had to do something about it. The message was for Salvati to make wooden paddles for corporal punishment and give them to parents who need help disciplining their children.
"I'm just going all by my heart," he said this week while sitting at his kitchen table. In the next room his mother watched TV in complete disagreement with everything he was doing, certain he would go to jail because of it. Upstairs his son worried that his friends at school would label his father a loon.
Salvati, on the other hand, did not have those concerns. His objective was to obey the message. "I believe it was given to me, and I'm sure I'll be buying a lot of timber," he said confident that many parents will agree with what he's doing. Many people disagree, however, including authorities on child discipline. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, "Spanking has negative consequences and is no more effective than other forms of discipline. In fact, there's often a gray area between when spanking ends and child abuse begins."
Appointment slips are available on the site for parents to download and have their children fill out when they misbehave. Parents are supposed to explain to the child what he or she did wrong and that the child is being punished out of love. "This is all out of love," Salvati said. "A bad person is going to use a baseball bat." Although he has given about 25 paddles away stamped with the words, "Love Joey," above the handle, Salvati said he is going to start stamping the paddles with a red anti-abuse message that reads, "Never in anger."
Salvati said he did not spank his children while they were growing up —until recently. About a week ago, Salvati said his 15-year-old son, Bobby, was disrespectful and was forced to fill out an appointment slip and endure one swat. "I told (Bobby), 'I'll be damned if I'm going to tell other parents to do this and not use it on you,'" Salvati said. Embarrassed about the incident, Bobby said he's less inclined to misbehave again although his father didn't swing too hard.
"I think it's a good idea because it changes me," Bobby said. Seeing a growing problem with children, Salvati, who said he was spanked on occasion but never abused, thinks parents should give up on the popular Time-Out discipline procedure and take a harder line with their children. Playing on a well-know proverb, Salvati said, "Spare the rod and you spoil the child."
To order a paddle
New Kensington resident Joey Salvati has made 85 wooden paddles intended only for disciplining children and is giving them away. The paddles, which weigh about 13 ounces and are about 2 ½ feet long, can be ordered Online at www.Spare-Rods.com at a cost of $5.75 for shipping. Information about using the paddles is included in the Web site. Salvati also has been giving the paddles away in the former Burger King parking lot along Tarentum Bridge Road. He has no plans to ever sell the paddles.
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