Dear Friends of Man-Making,

As you may be aware, I've not here posted in a very long time. The first post, introducing this blog and the Man-Making book was in 2004. Over the last 21 years there have been hundreds more posts calling men (mostly) to show up in the lives of the young men around them. But the world and my life has changed, and it's time for me to change course.

To be clear, the need for men to support young males on their journey toward manhood has never diminished, and in so many places, that need has grown even more desperate. Still, as I'm now over 80, I have to step back a little. 

My passion for this work is undiminished. I will continue to be involved as an Elder in the lives of many men and young men. I will also continue to support the heroic people who are finding or building creative ways fa young man's journey toward manhood. Personally, I'm not giving up on the cause, just changing my horse.

Some of you have been subscribers from the beginning, others just a long time. Thanks so much for all of that support. It's been good to know 500 or so others care enough to not unsubscribe. And, just maybe, as a result of you and others having "listened" over the years, some of you have paid more positive attention to the young men around you. That's my hope anyway.

So thanks to the Universe for this platform, for your attention, and for the young men whose lives may have been lifted up in some way because we gathered here.

My love and all blessings to you and yours,

Onward!

Earl

© Copyright 2005-2026 Earl Hipp. All Rights Reserved.

Boys, Men, Horses and Heroes

It has to be scary for a young man raised in the streets of a city, to encounter something so big and otherworldly as a horse! I guess that's the point! It's the reason the men of the Boys To Men of Memphis Mentoring Program in Memphis, Tennessee, are using horses to teach boys important lessons about dealing with your fears, caring for others, being responsible, and much, much more.

The picture below shows some of the young guys grooming a horse. It was taken from a video by a local Memphis TV station, that describes the very good work these folks are doing with and for boys. To see the full video, use this link.

The news station was so impressed with what they learned in taping this segment, that the station, along with a local church, donated $1000 to the Boys to Men of Memphis Mentoring Program. Nice!

This is just another example of how a few people, who really understand the need to guide young men on their journey toward a positive manhood can step up. I'm proud of them and am adding them to my growing list of heroes and sheroes in this work. Use this link if you want to learn about other heroes I've written about in the past.

If you want to learn more about this group, and perhaps be inspired to take an interest of yours and grow it into working with young men, you can contact them at Boys to Men of Memphis Mentoring Program, 1596 Barton Street, Memphis, TN 38106 or call (901) 810-1123

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© Copyright 2005-2022 Earl Hipp. All Rights Reserved.
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Lessons from a Coming-of-Age festival

The Tenetehar Wa Tembe village, is located in the Alto Rio Guama indigenous territory in Para state, Brazil. In this article describing their six-day, coming-of-age ritual, we learn the adolescents involved go through instruction, physical challenges, they are deprived of food, and they have their bodies painted and decorated.

. . . we should really be paying attention.

Whatever you think about this communities' ideas and rituals, we should really be paying attention. We have important things to learn from them. The people of the Tenetehar Wa Tembe village are recreating the kinds of ritual events people down through the centuries, in cultures all over the world, have performed for the survival of their people. They are enfolding their adolescent youngsters into the life of the community.

They are doing it in a way that makes it clear to everyone involved, but especially to the initiates, that something important has happened. Their world has changed, and the adults and elders have gathered around them. It's clear to the initiates they are no longer seen as children but are moving toward adulthood in everyone's eyes. They now have an important place in the life of their community and that new responsibilities await. Their community is depending on them to secure the future and the initiates can feel that weight. When, if ever, did you have that experience and learn those lessons?

It is our payback for the disconnection . . .

The often quoted "African" proverb states that when we don't intentionally bring our young people into the center of community life, they will burn down the village just to feel the heat. Today, all around me, I see young males run wild, often armed. Lord of the Flies kinds of chaos. It's not the kid's fault! It is our payback for the disconnection, lack of investment, and having ignored thousands of years of experience in dealing with adolescence.

It's not the kid's fault!

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Big Homie Lil Homie - Officer Homie

The term homie, as it relates to another person, is an urban slang abbreviation of home boy. A home boy is a guy who your really care about, feel a deep bond with, and who would do anything for you. A really trusted ally and friend, who is from your neighborhood, hometown, or part of your inner circle of friends. When I heard about a mentoring organization for fatherless boys called Big Homie Lil Homie, it really got my attention. I think we all need a few homies around us!

 

I think we all need a few homies around us!

Jamal Stroud, the man who started Big Homie Lil Homie, was a guy, who as a child, was lost in the South Carolina foster care system until the age of six. He was moved to six different foster homes in his first six years, and sometimes physically and sexually abused. He said it wasn't until his aunt finally adopted him that he was able to actually understand love. His is a story of how so much good can come from one man's trauma.

 

. . . shaping them into GREAT men of society.

Jamal started the non-profit Big Homie Lil Homie in 2017. It's purpose was molding and shaping fatherless boys, six to sixteen, into "GREAT men of society through mentoring." After a 2019 appearance on the Ellen Show, things really took off. Today the program has more than fifty mentors and six-hundred young men from the Columbia and Lexington, S.C. areas.

Today, Jamal Stroud is a married father of two. But out of the pain of his childhood, he is creating a program in which boys and men can find friendship, brotherhood, and lots of homies! You can learn more about Jamal's Big Homie Lil Homie program on their website (and see the clip from the Ellen Show too).

Officer homie!
Here's another homie who just happens to be a cop. In a beautiful example of community policing, Officer AJ (Anthony Johnson @ohnoitsdapopo) is working hard to connect with the young people in his community. He says "I grew up on the same streets I now protect." I think that makes him a home boy in uniform. Check out this video and see what you think. I think he's connecting big time!

Here's one more clip of officer AJ homie going one-on-one with a kid on the street. Turn up the volume to hear what he's layin down. 

How do we clone this officer?

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Men Teaching Boys about Manhood

The Robeson County Parks and Recreation Department in Lumberton, North Carolina, has a L.I.F.E. Mentoring Program for young guys aged 9-15. The L.I.F.E. program mission is: "To holistically develop youth in our communities, in the areas of life & relational skills, education, leadership, and qualifications that lead to becoming productive citizens." L.I.F.E. stands for Leadership Influence Family Empowerment.

I do like how this free mentoring program is teaching young men some of skills the mentors think a young guy on the edge of young adulthood should learn. In addition to much more, just a few of the skills taught include things like how to balance a checkbook, properly tie a necktie, and even proper table etiquette!

In a 2012 Man-Making Blog post, I proposed a list of developmental experiences for young guys. Experiences that would grow their understanding of the world around them and certainly drive important conversations. While my list was abbreviated and a little short on the very practical skills (how to shave, change a tire, replace a toilet flapper, etc.), I described the kinds of activities would certainly inform a young man's journey toward manhood.

In the L.I.F.E. Mentoring Program, the mentors check in with the boys weekly, and meet at least once per month in-person. A really nice touch is that the young men get to "shadow" their adult mentor. So many young males I've encountered (and who are in trouble) don't have a man in the house or even in his life. Shadowing a man gives a young man a much-needed look into man's world, seeing what real men actually do, learning how they got to where they are, and then having the conversations about what it takes to become a good man.

 

"I think we can reach more than we lose."

The Robeson County District Attorney, Matt Scott, said, "It can help us reach these young people before they make bad decisions." He went on to say, "I think we can reach more than we lose." Sad testimony to what can happen to young guys without adult male guidance. I know the young guys are hungry for it and are waiting.

 In Minneapolis and in too many other of our communities we're seeing the consequences of young men gone wild. Any focused attention on our pre-adult males by caring men would certainly be helpful. I know the young guys are hungry for it and I know they are waiting.

If you want more information about the L.I.F.E. mentoring program, call 910-671-3156 or 910-301-2272. You can also email Anthony Govan at anthony.govan@co.robeson.nc.us

 

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