Boys to Men Minnesota
– © 2008 by Jim Lovestar

Boys to Men Minnesota (BTM MN) is reforging the broken links in male community by creating a place where boys and men help heal each other through deep personal work, and making a powerful commitment to each other in community.

1) Our 2 1/2 day "The Rites of Passage Adventure Weekend" (RPAW) consists of 25 generative processes that address an adolescent boy's lack of trust, adequate role models and support. He gets permission and modeling to be authentic. Emotional breakthroughs occur for most boys. Trust and accountability are significant features of boy's and men's lives in the BTM community . Through the creation of a multi-generational values based community, vulnerable and/or angry boys and men build self esteem, plus learn to trust and be accountable.

2) The "Reclaiming the Teenage Fire" mentor training weekend helps a man to re-kindle the inherent enthusiasm for life of his teenage years. Through many powerful processes, a man is encouraged and empowered to discover and recover the missing emotional pieces of his own childhoods, thereby sensitizing him to the challenges of teen-age boys in the twenty-first century. Mentors report being more empowering parents. By learning the awareness and language of feelings, all participants are given new tools to communicate more effectively without hidden resentments.

Approximately a hundred men and boys have been transformed through Minnesota BTM's Rites of Passage weekend, character building events, and one to one mentor matching.in Minnesota. Thousands have participated in BTM programs worldwide.

• Community impact: Families are transformed as boys and men "wake up" to their full selves. Parents stress levels are reduced. Boys perform better in schools and there are fewer disruptions. Violence and recidivism are reduced. We've experienced journeymen who are better parents of their own children. Mentors parenting skill improve because of their new perspective as "uncles and big brothers." Our main goal is to help the boys. Healthier, happier boys and mentors will lead to healthier, happier communities.
• Society at large: ultimately we seek to initiate our society into a new ideal of manhood. The current popular ideal is of Men who try to fill themselves up with success, power, money and sex. When men change their mission to giving back to the next generation, we fulfill ourselves and become happy.

Boys need to know they are needed too. When the social ideal of boys is to support their families and communities they develop their self confidence, skills, and become happy.

The story of Boys to Men is movingly portrayed in the locally produced movie, JOURNEYMAN.

Journeyman is a documentary film that serves as a witness and a mirror to reflect boys' and men's hunger to know their true purpose and place in a soulful community Journeyman is a powerful tool to touch hearts, and begin discussions of how to reclaim that crucial sense of purpose and place.

The film takes you inside men's circles, Boys to Men Weekends, Mentor Training weekends, and follows the subject boys and their mentors as they faced new challenges, and grew in maturity and integrity. The movie also includes interviews with leading experts in child development, the effects of media, sociology, and famous proponents of Rites of Passage.

Central to the film's journey is the footage of men doing their own work so that they are able to show up cleanly for the next generation. JOURNEYMAN bears witness to a community of men and boys who are together creating a culture built on the foundation of a newly emerging definition of masculinity.

The DVD also includes over 30 minutes of special features on topics such as the influence of media on young men, a veteran's perspective on violent games, and powerful interview with MKP brother and Heisman trophy winner Aaron Taylor on mentoring and mature masculinity. You can watch a 3 minute preview of the film at <http://www.videohaiku.com/journeyman/trailer.mp4> DVDs are available off the website at, www.mirrormanfilms.org, or by calling (877) 515-9150. Please contact Charlie Borden about arranging a Journeyman screening by e-mailing him at answers@mirrormanfilms.org.