Community Rites of Passage – Becoming Men Program (Tas)

It takes an extended community...to raise teenagers.  There are regular camps for boys 13-15 years. This is a structured programme with a separation from mother, family and friends; a challenge that each boy is given; and a celebratory return to family and friends. It is a critical part of a young person’s life and helps them develop as individuals. The father or a mentor attends the camp with the boy, and the mother attends the departure and return ceremonies on Bruny Island. This — and much more —is all explained in the information session.  Mothers play a critical role at the start and finish of the 4 days. Boys develop a stronger relationship with their father, an increased respect for women, are more motivated to set goals and finish school, and generally demonstrate improved communication and social skills.

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'Educated Boys Have More Options' (Jamaica)

Anthropologist Dr Herbert Gayle visited Ardenne High School in St Andrew on Wednesday to enforce that young men who are educated have more options than those who are not. Gayle lectures in the Department of Sociology, Psychology and Social Work at the University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona. He said he had three messages - one for the students, one for teachers and one for parents. "Keep yourselves in school, struggle, whatever it takes, make sure you are in school so you have maximum advantage," Gayle reminded the boys before he left. To the teachers, he said: "Teachers in my hearing, do not ever, ever, pursue a policy where you have one standard for girls and one for boys. Your job is to reshape the society, have one standard and let the boys reach up to it because they are bright!" And to the parents: "In order for boys to do well, they need one and a half times more food than girls." The crowd, made up of hundreds of Ardenne boys, exploded in cheers at that remark.

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The men from Uncle making a difference in boys' lives

A mentoring project for boys with absent fathers is struggling to stay afloat, writes Saffron Howden. When Luke Chamberlain's father died suddenly of a heart attack while surfing near Byron Bay two years ago, the nine-year-old was left with his twin sisters and a loving mother. It wasn't enough. He needed a male guide: someone to take him hiking, camping and surfing; someone to talk about cars, movies, sport and girls.

An uncle was the obvious choice - and Uncle, a unique community group that for nearly 15 years has helped hundreds of boys with absent or fickle fathers find adult male mentors, provided just that. "There's a lot of boys growing up without father figures around; some of them are slack, some of them have left, some have gone off with other women," Uncle's chief executive, Mark Gasson, said. "[Uncle is] never a replacement for a dad, but it's someone in their life that they can call and say, 'I'm having this crisis."

Big Buddy - help a boy become a man (NZ)

Big Buddy mentoring is based on the simple philosophy that boys need good male role models in their lives to become good men. Unfortunately, many boys do not have a father or other male role model in their lives and while mothers do courageous work in raising their boys alone, they cannot model maleness. And above all else, boys learn through modelling. A simple solution is to match these boys with a well-screened male mentor who can foster a relationship similar to that of say an uncle; a relationship we hope is for life. To do this we recruit men from the community to act as voluntary mentors to these fatherless boys. The Big Buddy mentor commits to spending 2-3 hours a week with a boy (Little Buddy, aged 7-12) for at least a year but all going well, for much longer than that. They spend quality time together doing ordinary things like kicking a ball round a park, fishing, walking on the beach or visiting a museum. The content of the outings is not important - just showing up regularly, listening to and being with a Little Buddy is probably the most important gift a Big Buddy gives. They can both have a lot of fun in the process! A regular weekly phone call adds continuity to the relationship.

Essentially Men workshop for men leading, supporting, managing or counselling other men

Essentially Men is offering a unique workshop to recharge and upskill men who are working with men or youth as leaders. This is a special edition of the powerful experiential Essentially Men training programme presented especially for facilitators, counsellors, therapists, doctors, support workers, social workers, teachers, trainers, group leaders & organisational managers.

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