By LACHLAN MOORHEAD
BEN Hamilton didn’t believe the news when he learnt he’d been selected as the YMCA Casey ARC Father of the Year – and he’s still pinching himself.
The Narre Warren father of three was shocked when his eldest daughter, Tamara, came home from school with an award that wasn’t hers – rather it was for her Dad.
“I was blown away, she hadn’t said anything to me about it,” Mr Hamilton said.
“When I found out she had nominated me and she came home with the envelope I was thinking ‘are you for real?’”
The 11-year-old nominated her dad for Father of the Year at her school, Maramba Primary School, and while Mr Hamilton wasn’t expecting the award, he said he wasn’t surprised with his daughter’s initiative.
“She’s a very self-driven little girl,” he said.
“If she doesn’t have her head buried in a book reading then she’s finishing her homework the day she gets it!”
Tamara’s nomination describes her dad as a “hero” for taking care of her and her siblings, including her eight-year-old brother Carey, and her five-year-old sister Isabelle.
“He kicks the footy with me, he joins in when my brother and sister and I play a board game,” Tamara wrote.
“My Dad is very funny and playful. He always makes a joke and I love him more than the earth, sun and the entire universe.”
Recipients of the YMCA Community Father of the Year at YMCA-managed centres around Victoria will go into a pool for the Victorian Father of the Year award.
