NCFM Board Member Fred Sottile on the right
BOND Men’s Conference
The Brotherhood Organization of A New Destiny (BOND) had a successful 3rd Annual Fatherhood and Men’s Conference last Saturday (6/16) in Los Angeles. The auditorium was standing room only as men of all ages and races gathered at the BOND headquarters during Father’s Day weekend.
The conference began with a powerful expert panel discussion featuring (L-R) Reynard Taylor, small business owner and father; Fred Sottile, National Board Member of the National Coalition for Men (NCFM) and Secretary of NCFM Los Angeles; and Larry Lewis, Former Professional Basketball Player and Head Player Development Coach/Los Angeles Defenders/Los Angeles Lakers Affiliate Team. BOND founder and president, Rev. Jesse Lee Peterson, moderated the event.
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The panelists didn’t waste any time tackling some of the most serious challenges facing men today. They discussed topics such as what it means to be man; how to lead your family in the right way; and dealing with the challenges of marriage. In addition to dealing with ways to improve men’s leadership skills in the home, the panel also addressed ways to navigate the family court system so that men who find themselves in the unfortunate situation of divorce can still be a part of their children’s lives.
The panel discussion was followed by the popular workshop where Rev. Peterson introduces a theme and a few topics and peppers the audience with questions to stimulate discussion. The conversation brought about very real and honest conversations about anger, forgiveness and how men can improve and reconcile their relationships with their children, wives and parents.
Some of the men in the audience opened up about harboring anger and resentment toward their parents. One of the men said that he had unresolved anger with his father, which was coloring the way he dealt with his wife and kids. Rev. Peterson advised the man to go and talk with his father and let him know that he resented the way his dad dealt with him, and forgive his father. The man said his dad was up in age and that it probably wouldn’t make a difference, but he soon realized that it wasn’t doing him any good to hold on to the anger and that it might help his dad as well. He said he planned to talk with his father.
There were also several instances where the men’s hearts were opened to the truth about how their early relationship with their parents—especially their mothers—has influenced the type of women they married and how they relate to their wives. This was a revelation to some of the men who had not considered that they had buried resentment/anger towards their mothers. As the discussion went along it was apparent that the men were freed up as they began to understand the root cause of some of their problems and those of their families.
Read the rest of the article here: http://www.bondaction.org/content/article/35439/BOND%20Men%27s%20Conference
