Last Sunday was Father's Day. I hope all of our Father and father figures had a fabulous day and were truly spoiled and appreciated throughout the day by family.  

Fathers hold a specific role in every family. Apart from being the person who delivers those sad and often forgettable 'dad jokes', fathers can offer stability, security and set appropriate boundaries for all members in the family group. For girls, dads are the first men to provide some feedback and encouragement on how she will be perceived as a young woman in a social setting. Girls long to receive affirmation and advice from their fathers as they grow and develop into the young women they ultimately will become. It is the interactions she experiences with her father that will prepare her for her interaction with subsequent young men.  It is unfortunate that as girls move into high school and adolescence, dads can be less confident to get involved in their lives and may tend to be more comfortable taking a backstage position. Whilst their daughter's relationship with their mother is very important, it is better this is not done at the expense of their daughter's relationship with their father.  Adolescent girls can be emotional, unpredictable and at times irrational, which can strike fear into the hearts of the most seasoned father. These fluctuations in the emotional development of a teenage girl  are tempered by the wisdom and guidance of a loving father.

At a recent meeting, a presenter introduced the audience to the fathering project. The website http://thefatheringproject.org/  has some wonderful resources and tips on how to remain connected with your children, deal with stress and improve the health and wellbeing of your child through warm and loving relationships. I encourage you to look at this website and use the information to your advantage.

By the time you receive this edition of the Inside out , the College reception will have moved to a classroom (Room 11) situated near the carpark through the first site entry gate. Reception will remain here until Term 4. The noise of the refurbishments at reception became a work hazard through the week, which necessitated an earlier than expected move for the ladies. If you are visiting the College in the coming weeks, you will not be able to access the old reception as it will be locked up. We thank you for your cooperation during these building works.

Last week we commissioned the new student leaders of the College. It is always a very moving ceremony as the outgoing girls are acknowledged for their wonderful leadership and the incoming girls are excited and energized with the service they will provide. I wish the new team the very best and look forward to the initiative and support they will give the College. I hope their work will enable the College to continue to be a place where people can take the risk to become the best they can. To the outgoing team, I say thank you. They have been active in their work and diligent in their endeavours to build our community. They now can focus on their studies and the finishing weeks of their 13 years of school education.

Through the week we held the Alumni AGM. Thank you to those who sent their apologies. It was heartening to see that many of our alumni were interested in the meeting. I am thrilled to inform you that Sara Barnes (2003) is our new President. We were unable to fill the Vice President, Treasurer and Secretary roles, so if you would like to assist Sara, I ask that you contact her or the College for further information. This marks a new and exciting era for our alumni and I am very grateful for the interest and support the College has received from alumni over the last months.

As we prepare to celebrate the 10th anniversary of our annual Father Daughter Dance, I will leave you with a prayer of gratitude for the kind and loving fathers in our lives. I hope to see you on the dance floor with your daughter on Friday night.

Blessings 
Sue Lennox