Randy Larkin, left, and his son Nick prepare for a baseball game Friday at Cowser Field in East Lawrence. Nick was a first-place winner for sixth- graders in the Kansas City Royals' Essay Contest for Father of the Year, writing about his dad.

Lawrence 12-year-old Nick Larkin didn’t have to worry about buying his dad a Father’s Day card this year. He already put his feelings down on paper.

“My father means everything to me,” wrote Nick Larkin, who just completed sixth grade at Corpus Christi. “He is my basketball coach, my baseball coach, the manager of my soccer team and most importantly, my dad.”

Nick wrote the essay at the prompting of his teacher and entered it in the Kansas City Royals’ Father of the Year Essay Contest. He and his mother decided to keep it a secret from Nick’s dad, Randy Larkin.

But the jig was up once it was announced that Nick’s essay was picked as one of the winners from the nearly 4,600 essays submitted. Out of 564 essays from sixth-graders in Kansas and Missouri, Nick’s was picked as No. 1.

“It was great. I thought the essay was excellent,” Randy Larkin said. “Of course I was very touched by it. It was very nice.”

Nick said it took him about two weeks to write the essay, which he titled, “What My Father Means to Me.”

He was determined to win.

“He means a lot to me,” Nick said. “He’s a very good father.”

Nick wrote about how his dad has never missed one of his sporting events, spends all of his time with his three children and how his parents are the perfect match, which happens to be Randy’s favorite part of the essay.

“He writes about my relationship with my wife, Gayle, and he describes it as me being a mouse and guarding her like she’s a piece of cheese,” Randy said. “That stands out, but the rest of it is very good too.”

After winning the contest, Nick and his dad were invited to attend a banquet at the Diamond Club at Kauffman Stadium. Different celebrities were on hand to read portions of the winning essays. Former Kansas City Chief wide receiver Eddie Kennison read an excerpt from Nick’s essay.

“It was a very memorable experience,” Randy Larkin said. “Very rewarding.”

Nick also received four tickets to a Royals game, a Royals hat and T-shirt, a $250 savings bond and other gift certificates. He also got to take home a large poster that his winning essay was printed on. And with words like these — “My dad deserves my respect and everyone’s respect. He made me who I am today. My dad is the best, and I’m glad he is my father. My father means everything to me” — Nick may never have to buy another Father’s Day card again.