Mentees make us proud in joyful celebration
“I have always hoped and prayed my son would connect to his Culture through dance.” Five of the young people from our Stand As One mentoring program recently took part in a […]
Our stories
James is determined not to make the same mistakes as his dad
James was set on making a fresh start at being a parent when he signed up for Keeping Us Together and Storytime at Parklea Correctional Centre. He had been in and out of prison since he was a child, repeating the intergenerational incarceration cycle as his dad had been in prison most of James’s childhood. James and his partner had become parents at a young age and, due to their drug addictions and unstable home environment, their child was placed into kinship care.
During the SHINE for Kids programs, James shared that as he was from an Indigenous background it was important to him that his child be placed with kinship and not in the foster care system. He shared that he’d felt so relieved when he found out that his child was living with family nearby and not with a stranger. As James had been in prison much of his life, he had lost contact with his child and hadn’t seen them in years.
Whilst in custody this time, James was placed in the drug recovery program and a goal he had was to work on establishing and repairing his relationship with his child after so long apart. He initiated contact with his child by participating in Storytime and his child’s caseworker was supportive of him once he told them he was participating in our programs.
When he started Keeping Us Together, he had a full A4 page of questions for the facilitator. During the sessions he was a very active participant and said, ‘I didn’t know that!’ and ‘ah yeah, that’s why they [children] do this’. He graduated from Keeping Us Together feeling prepared to take the next steps with forging a positive relationship with his child and expressed how grateful he was to the SHINE team.
“I learnt things I never thought I would about myself and my child. I don’t want to repeat the mistakes my father made”, James told our team. He said when he gets released, the first thing he is going to do is meet his child’s caseworker and further develop their contact and bond, and that one day he wants to buy his kid a pizza!
Other stories
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“I choose to be the best mum I can be”: What Becky* gained from parenting program, in her words
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Central Coast kids mentoring success in 2022
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Seven year old Len* loves visiting his dad, with a little support from SHINE
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By staff member Abbey Kenaly Over the past six weeks, seven mums have been participating in Keeping Us Together at Dillwynia Correctional Complex. The most rewarding part of facilitating Keeping Us Together is seeing the […]
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RISE Together Day – Western Sydney
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RISE Together Day – Kempsey
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RISE Together Day – Goulburn
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Love at first sight for dad meeting newborn daughter
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Missing milestones with dad is really hard, but we can help
Charlie* is in custody at Parklea and is dearly missing his 4-year-old daughter Amelia*. Before he was incarcerated, Amelia and Charlie would read together every night at bedtime. He approached SHINE for […]
“I’m going to see my mummy!”: Kids see mum for first time in two years
By our Windsor Child and Family Worker I’ve worked with a family with mum in custody at Dillwynia for over two years. When I first met the family, the children were six […]
And the winner is ….
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A dad and daughter back together at last
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Two young men’s strong bond, in good times and bad
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Proud day for family and their SHINE For Kids volunteer
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National Volunteer Week – Meet Debbie!
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National Volunteer Week – Meet Dennis!
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National Volunteer Week – Meet Stephanie!
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National Volunteer Week – Meet Andrew!
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National Volunteer Week – Meet Helen!
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