Greg’s Story

Why Power to the Kids matters to me

In 1994 Greg and his wife Heather had a holiday in Northern Sulawesi Indonesia and what became apparent was how happy these people were with so little material possessions. Upon returning to Australia they re-evaluated their full time jobs and the pressures of raising 2 little boys, their life appeared to be caught up in a work and childcare roundabout. So in March 1995 they quit their full time jobs, rented out their house and hit the road in search of adventure and a simpler way of life.

Fast forward 5 years, the trip has finally concluded, Todd and Ryan are in formal school, and Greg and Heather have a successful landscape photography business, selling images of the Australian landscape, Australia-wide and worldwide. The digital photography revolution slowly erodes Heather and Greg’s photography business and Greg embarks on a new career as a Vocational Education and Training lecturer firstly with TAFE NSW and finally with Darwin University.

In that 15-year time bracket, Greg has many interactions with his mostly post-adolescent male students and soon realises that a lot of young men are confused about their place in society and what it takes to be a man. Body image, aggression and alcohol-fuelled violence seem to be recurrent themes.

How I came to be involved with Power to the Kids

As a semi-retirement gig, I take up work at a local primary school as a general assistant looking after lawns and maintenance, I also involve myself with the P&C committee and during this time I meet Dr Nicola Holmes at her presentation about anxiety issues in school-aged children. Her talk really strikes a chord and in association Dr Annemarie Winters, Dr Nicola Holmes and myself we create the Power to the Kids program to hopefully educate and bring awareness to this endemic issue.