Journeymen Triangle

Community mentor groups or “J-Groups” are held twice each month for two hours with mentors and Journeymen, who we call “J-Men.” J-Group meetings are structured opportunities to explore aspects of healthy masculinity. Participants learn about accountability, integrity, personal responsibility, honest communication, emotional literacy, and the importance of discovering and articulating a sense of personal mission in the world.

These are safe and brave spaces in which J-Men are encouraged to talk about the events, emotions, and experiences of their lives. It is where they get to practice being fully alive and communicative among men and peers, and where mentors are challenged to model authenticity, vulnerability and other aspects of healthy masculinity.

For many of the boys, our meetings can be the first time they witness men being open, honest, and non-judgmental. This experience enables boys to develop positive decision-making skills, by learning how to analyze their choices and assess the consequences of their actions. We provide a place of belonging, an opportunity to be authentic, a way to interact with other boys and men emotionally. Our groups give boys a sense that community will always be there for them and that they can be in charge of their own life in powerful and generative ways.

Each community J-group group consists of 5-10 teenage boys, 1-2 trained facilitator(s), and 2-5 volunteer male mentors. We specifically work with 13-19-year-old teenage boys. Many of the boys in our program are considered, “at-risk” or otherwise disconnected, displaced, and/or without a supportive community. Many of the boys would not fall into this "at-risk" category but still benefit from this supportive community of men and boys.

Virtual Journeymen Mentoring Groups or "J-groups" are a safe and brave space in which young men are encouraged to talk about the events, emotions, and experiences of their lives. It is where they get to practice being fully alive and communicative among men and peers, and where mentors model authenticity, vulnerability, and other aspects of healthy masculinity.

These mentoring circles have been happening weekly for the past 10 years in Raleigh and Asheville, NC. Due to the pandemics in 2020, we moved created virtual groups and have opened our programs up to young men across the state of North Carolina and across the country. Groups consist of 1-2 staff facilitator(s), 2-5 volunteer male mentors, and 5-15 teenage boys who are referred to Journeymen by teachers, parents, and out-patient therapy groups.

For many of the boys, our meetings can be the first time they witness men being open, honest, and non-judgmental. This experience enables boys to develop positive decision-making skills, by learning how to analyze their choices and assess the consequences of their actions. We provide a place of belonging, an opportunity to be authentic, a way to interact with other boys and men emotionally. Our groups give boys a sense that community will always be there for them and that they can be in charge of their own life in powerful and generative ways.