Connecting Fathers
and Daughters
Wherever They Are
Established in 2008 by Camp Diva Leadership Academy’s Girl Action Team, "Date With Dad Weekend" is a fun-filled weekend for dads and daughters, held at various locations throughout the month of March, for over a decade and counting.
“There’s no denying that a woman’s relationship with her father is one of the most crucial in her life. The quality of that connection— good, damaged, or otherwise—powerfully impacts dads and daughters in a variety of ways. A father’s effect on his daughter’s psychological well-being and identity is far-reaching. A daughter’s sense of self, for instance, is often connected to how her father views her. A girl stands a better chance of becoming a self-confident woman if she has a close bond with her father.”
—Angela Patton, CEO
The Program from the
2024 Sundance Award-Winning Documentary
How the
Date With Dad
Weekend Started
Before Girls For A Change and Camp Diva Leadership Academy merged into one organization, the two collaborated to run a Girl Action Team (a signature program of Girls For A Change) within Angela Patton’s Camp Diva Leadership Academy.
After engaging participants in discussion around an issue they felt passionate about, they chose to focus on developing stronger relationships with their fathers - and helping other Black girls do the same. The first Date with Dad Weekend was a community-wide Daddy Daughter Dance where girls and their fathers were invited for dinner, dancing, comedy, and fun activities. The dance was incredible. Unfortunately, some of the girls in the program felt left out of the experience because their fathers were incarcerated.
“What if we had the dance in the jail?” - the question that ignited the event “A Dance of Their Own.”
The girls wrote to a local Sheriff and asked if daughters could spend a special afternoon with their incarcerated fathers to enjoy “a dance of their own.” Former Sheriff C.T. Woody, at Richmond City Justice Center, said “yes,” and the very first Daddy Daughter Dance in jail was born.
Designed to take place within a correctional facility, participating fathers dress in semi-formal attire for a date with their daughters, with no physical barriers between them. They enjoy a meal, live comedy, games, a dance, and other activities aimed at father-daughter bonding.
To prepare for this meaningful event, fathers, mothers/guardians, and daughters participate in community healing circles led by trained facilitators. These sessions build up to a culminating celebration, aimed not just at enhancing the bond between fathers and daughters, but also at strengthening family relationships as a whole, reinforcing the family's unity and resilience.
Years later, Film Director Natalie Rae discovered Angela's TED talk, felt an immediate connection to its message and impact, and reached out to tell the story. Natalie and her crew attended one of these dances and followed four very special families through the process.
After an eight-year journey, Daughters made its world premiere at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival and took home two awards: "Festival Favorite" and "Audience Choice: U.S. Documentary Competition."
Resources and Press
- March 2017: Richmond City Sheriff's Office, Press Release
- December 2017: Richmond City Sheriff's Office, Annual Report
- November 2015: National Fatherhood Initiative® Article: Richmond Jail Gives Dads 3 Hours and Hope