Pizzas, Rain And The Father of the Future
1999 Wellington Father's Forum
Rain was pouring down, and New Zealand got its first preview of the upcoming winter months, as icy southerlies swept the streets of Wellington and brought the first snow to lower levels on the mainland. Few Wellingtonian families were brave enough to pull themselves out from under the sheets early on this cold Saturday morning, April the 17th, and attend the official opening ceremony at the Michael Fowler Centre.
By this time, the organisers had been on their feet for three hours, tying up any remaining loose ends. The finances had been a cliff-hanger almost to the last minute. Only a few weeks before, the council of mayors of the Wellington region approved $20,000 for the event, nearly half of the total bill. After more than a year, Wellington’s first forum on fathers finally got the go-ahead.
“Fathers, families and the future”, as it was called, was actually a three-part event. It kicked off with a youth forum on Monday, April the 12th, a public forum on the following Saturday, and a Social Policy forum on Monday the 19th. It was organised by the new Father&Child Trust Wellington, which was launched with an unofficial dinner on the Saturday night. The Trust, at this stage essentially consisting of the Trustees Mike Wignall, Peter Crosland and Paul Callister, had access to an extensive network of men’s groups, Welling.Men, that were prepared to help and made sure that things ran smoothly on the day.
But what could go wrong, went wrong. “Our worst mistake with the Youth Forum was having it during the school holidays.” says Mike Wignall. They expected 300-400 young people, but only 100 came. The kids left the scene well-fed, however: 200 pizzas had been ordered - and got wolfed down by anyone who looked hungry.
The weather did nothing for the turnout on the Saturday, either. While a few hundred kids and parents made use of free entertainment provided for them in the Town Hall, and browsed the community stalls, the extensive range of free workshops was hardly used, even though a free creche was available. Several workshops had to be cancelled. But most participants agreed that they got a lot more out of it than if the workshops had been fuller.
And what a selection it was. Ranging from playing with children to Big Buddy programmes, about 25 different themes were available - more than ever before at a fathers forum. They were facilitated by community workers from around the country.
Meanwhile, over in the Town Hall the kids were busy creating the “father of the future” out of the materials provided - tubes, cardboard and lots of silver foil. The result often looked like an astronaut. “I love my dad” read many of the notes kids had attached to their creation.
On the Monday, then, the invitation-only Social Policy Forum proved a full success. The reserved lounge in the town hall was full of representatives from government institutions, community leaders, and law experts. “In Wellington you never know. People are busy, they make up their minds at the last minute, or they say they come and then something gets in the way.” says Paul Callister, one of the organisers.
Why a Social Policy Forum?
“Firstly, there is a need for published research and position statements as a basis for informed debate on fathering issues and policy. Secondly, in addition to public involvement, there should be scholarly debate on these matters.” says co-organiser Stuart Birks.
So, will there be another fathers forum in Wellington?
Says Mike Wignall: “This was something that hadn’t been tried before and like anything new, it takes time to catch on. Do it again and more people will come because those who came this time really enjoyed it and the word will spread. I think there is a tendency in New Zealand to try something once and if it doesn’t work, chuck it away and try something different.”