NGO partners with CoJ to promote fatherhood and healthy community

As part of their commitment to promoting fatherhood as well as healthy communities, the Sylvester Mashilo Foundation (SMF) has partnered with the City of Johannesburg (CoJ) for the second run/ walk that will be held at the Ruimsig Athletics Stadium on July 16.

According to SMF, in order to address the endemic fatherlessness, activism efforts should focus on promoting fatherhood and deepening dialogue on the social challenge of fatherlessness.

Founded in 2020, the foundation aims to create a safer and better world for children by supporting communities through programmes that build young boys, intentional parenting interventions and holding men accountable to display compassionate manhood.

The foundation hopes to achieve these ideals by changing mindsets through unlearning and learning.“As a foundation, we believe that the work we do with young boys focuses on helping them understand their role in society.

The role of being compassionate and caring men not only for their families but the community around them, will by extension engender a sense of protectionism for the women and girls in their lives, while ending a generation of fatherlessness.

We run several programmes that are helping to create a new generation of men while supporting the restoration of family values and building safer communities for all of us,” said the Managing Director of SMF, Sylvester Mashilo.

The Fatherhood Running Club which is an initiative of SMF in partnership with CoJ Region C – Sport and Recreation will be hosting a 2, 5, 10, 21, 42 and 67km run/ walk from 07:00 on the day.

The organisers told the Northsider that the run/ walk will raise awareness of absent fathers’ impact and promote fatherhood while promoting a healthy lifestyle.

The 2022 series was officially launched in January 2022 by the Executive Mayor Dr Mpho Phalatse.

The SMF programmes which are delivered at no charge to participants include:

• The boys mentorship

This is the foundation’s flagship programme aimed at providing young boys with the required skills to navigate each phase of their lives.

Boys aged eight to 16 are provided with emotional support and physical tools to help them manage and cope with life transitions like dealing with anger, upsets and identity.

The programme currently supports two cohorts of 100 boys, one in Johannesburg and the other in Bophelong in the Vaal Triangle.

• Fatherhood network

The network has three elements: (1) a commitment by each man to work on himself; (2) signing the foundation’s pledge for a safer and better world; (3) mentoring the boy child.

The mentors/ uncles play an important role by standing in the gap for boys without active fathers in their lives.

All men above 21 years of age, whether a father or not, can belong to the Fatherhood network.

Last year the Fatherhood network launched the Fatherhood Running Club with a 670km/ 27 days run to raise awareness on fatherlessness in our country.

• Motherhood network

This network is a powerful platform for women to be connected with other women.

The network facilitates an exchange of ideas/ wisdom; the women provide each other with emotional support, intentional parenting advice, and personal and business/ career growth opportunities.

“The work of national community building belongs to all of us. This year we must commit ourselves as individuals and society at large to intentionally create a better and safer world for our children.

“The privilege of having present and intentional parents must not be for a few – all our children deserve our heart,” said Mashilo.

For more information about the Sylvester Mashilo Foundation, go to https://sylvestermashilo.co.za/, email: info@sylvestermashilo.co.za or call 079 406 9494