CAMPFIRE COOK-OFFS!

A virtual dinner-party network created to spend time with family has helped lonely people across the country and beyond

- Dan Proudman

Peter and Tracy Lorimer from Newcastle, NSW, always loved having family dinners. But when COVID-19 hit, they couldn’t travel to see their son Jack, who lived 400km away from them in Gunnedah.

Determined to enjoy Sunday dinners together, Peter and the couple’s daughter Molly set up The Great Coronavirus Camp Oven Cook Off on Facebook.

The idea was to cook something on their camp stove every Sunday, and for Jack to do the same so it felt like they were together. As the weeks progressed, they started to challenge themselves to cook anything from seafood to curries to desserts – and as they did, more and more people started to join them.