Date with dad: A father-daughter dance reveals the power of 'real' men

Tommy and Camryn McNeal
Camryn McNeal will dance with her dad, Tommy, this Valentine's Day at the Earle Brown Heritage Center in Brooklyn Park. She'll be among more than 600 participants at the fourth annual Father and Daughter Dance hosted by the nonprofit Positive Image in Minneapolis.
Doualy Xaykaothao | MPR News

When the nonprofit group Positive Image in Minneapolis first hosted a father-daughter dance four years ago, about 75 girls attended with their dads, uncles or grandfathers.

This Sunday on Valentine's Day, the sold-out event inside a renovated barn at the Earle Brown Heritage Center in Brooklyn Center will bring together more than 600 people, mostly black men in suits or tuxedos and their daughters in long formal dresses.

MPR News asked Tommy McNeal, one of the co-founders of the annual event, and his 10-year-old daughter to talk about the dance and their relationship.

Terry Austin is a co-founder of Positive Image.
Terry Austin is a co-founder of Positive Image, a nonprofit that organized this weekend's Father and Daughter Dance for more than 600 attendees, seen here on Tuesday.
Doualy Xaykaothao | MPR News

"For myself and Terry Austin, who is the founder of Positive Image — he has two daughters, I have two daughters — I think the thing that resonated with us the most was our ability to understand that the first strong male in our daughters' lives would be that of the father," McNeal said.

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"We wanted to make sure that they understood what that meant, by having other men around their daughters so that they can reflect upon what it's like to be able to have solid role models in their lives that provide a positive image."

Camryn McNeal said that's what she loves about her dad — that he's a "real man" who is always there for her.

"Some kids don't have their fathers. God blessed me with mine," she said. "I'm really happy to have him home everyday and actually get to hug and kiss him when he comes home. This is exciting, we're both in the moment right now. I'm pretty sure we're both just waiting for this Sunday to come up."

Click on the audio player above to hear more of their story.