15 August 2019

You’re connecting busy dads with their children

Posted in Chaplaincy / Family life / School life / SU QLD


It’s not always easy for dads to spend quality time with their children in today’s competitive, fast-paced world. But the need is vital.

One way Pallara State School’s Chappy Andrea is helping parents connect with their children is through an annual Camp Out at the school, where dads play games, sleep in tents, cook up burgers on the BBQ, and spend one-on-one time with their child.

Camp Out provides the opportunity for vital connections to grow between fathers and their children. Your generous support for chaplaincy is helping to deliver programs like this.

But it’s not just working dads that are seeing the value. Father of three, Mike says Camp Out is valuable because it gets you out of the routine of everyday life and lets you simply enjoy spending time with your kids.

“As a stay-at-home dad, I’m often doing things because I’m trying to get something done, but at Camp Out it’s just about having fun. The face-painting and shaving cream games, they were just for fun and connection,” says Mike.

“A lot of dads don’t get to see their kids at school. They miss out on dropping them off and picking them up, and Camp Out was a place where they could just be with their kids in a very natural way.”

Camp Out runs in Term 3. Last year’s event included a rock-climbing wall, a series of father/child team games, ice-cream sundaes for dessert and pancakes for breakfast, topped off with a night spent camping out in tents pitched across the school oval.

More than 100 attended last year’s event, which ran from 1pm on the Saturday to 7:30am the following morning.

Chappy Andrea says she loves bringing families closer together.

“I have such a passion for dads to have a good relationship with their kids.

“But Camp Out is also a great way for the dads to get to know each other. It provides the opportunity and the space to grow friendships, and that really helps build a sense of community within the school.”

School chaplains like Andrea are in schools running initiatives like Camp Out thanks to your support. Please help keep this support going by heading to suqld.org/donate.

SU QLD would like to acknowledge school chaplain Jennifer Bennett for pioneering this program at Yeronga State School, sacrificing her time and talent over the past eight years to build connections between father’s and their children.



Samuel Moore

Digital Media and Communications Coordinator

2 Comments

  1. Great idea. Knowing that Dad is there for them (in a situation where he can relax) is confidence building for the kids. Remember the little girl who wanted quality time with Dad “and lots of it!”

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