FAMILY MATTERS Building better fathers sons and husbands OCTOBER 3 -9, 2013
ii pages 31 - 32.
With the motto “Building Better Men”, LifeBuilders have over 100 groups throughout England and Wales who align themselves to the needs of men.
L
ifeBuilders is a national ministry to men and boys with a clear mission to help develop better men, fathers, sons and husbands, who will serve their families and communities in the wider context of the Christian faith. It is the official men’s ministry arm of the New Testament Church of God, one of the oldest black-led churches in the UK, which celebrated its 60th anniversary this year. With the motto “Building Better Men”, LifeBuilders have over 100 groups throughout England and Wales who align themselves to the needs and causes of men both in the church and in the community. They run in-house projects and regularly forge links with various groups and individuals delivering services related to: youth, education, gun, knife and gang-related crime-reduction, prisoners, charitable causes, sports as well as financial and family matters. Originally known as the Laymen’s Fellowship, Men’s Fellowship and then Men’s Ministries, in 2009 the former director Rev Alex Gordon spearheaded the rebranding of the department
to LifeBuilders in order to focus time and resources in people rather than in programmes. The current National Director, Rev David Perrin and his leadership team have continued in this vein maintaining a network of membership groups, organising support, education, training and resources in order that each local group can adequately serve their respective communities. In fact, LifeBuilders have stretched their hands far beyond the shores of the United Kingdom by coordinating charitable outreach to Africa in 2012, where a group of young people travelled to Malawi. There they served the locals by feeding families, cleaning and assisting in hospitals and working on a building project for an orphanage. One of the major successes of the organisation is the Boyz2Men Project (B2M), which is for boys aged 13-17 years. The B2M project exists to support, equip and empower teenage boys to recognise their self worth and achieve their potential. B2M work alongside families to reinforce the importance of: self respect, social responsibil-
ity and moral values. This is achieved through mentoring, sports activities, life skills, open discussion, teaching and other learning methods. This year saw the 5th Annual Boyz2Men Retreat where over 30 teenage boys spent three days away from home at an activity centre in Northamptonshire. LifeBuilders run a number of national events throughout the year including the ‘Men-Only’ event, which is held in a different place each year. This event, normally held over two days, LifeBuilders are keen on creating a space where men can talk and share openly about issues, some of which are not usually addressed within the church setting. Pornography, financial integrity and father-son relationships are just a few of the topics that have been covered in past meetings. Junior Bucknor, LifeBuilders National Secretary said: “It is important that we practice a lifestyle of service to others. In an age where the media often promotes the measure of manhood Continues on page 32 ii
Adopt a life The Royal Borough of Greenwich is looking to recruit adopters from all walks of life and especially welcomes enquiries from Black and minority ethnic families who are able to provide a child with a loving, stable and secure home.
Adopt with Royal Greenwich
For details of our information sessions, contact the adoption team on 020 8921 2752 or www.royalgreenwich.gov.uk/adoption
Family Matters
32 | THE VOICE OCTOBER 3 - 9, 2013
There has never been a better time to adopt a child
T
he North London Adoption Consortium’s annual information event will again see families from in and around London come together to hear how they can adopt a child. Parents who have already adopted children will be there to tell their stories – the real facts! People who were adopted as children will talk about their emotional journey and adoption professionals will provide information about the process, the children waiting and the support available that would help you become the parent you want to be or to extend your family through adoption. Join the consortium on Wednesday 6 November 2013, 6,30pm at Isling-
ton Assembly Hall, Upper Street, London, N1 2UD. At 7pm there will be a panel discussion that aims to answer any of your questions or you can speak with a social worker or adoptive parent on a one-to-one basis if you prefer. AUTHORITY Adoption is rewarding and will change lives – just like all parenting it has challenges, but we’ll guide and support you through them. The North London Adoption Consortium has a wealth of experience and consists of local authority adoption agencies in Barnet, Camden, Enfield, Haringey and Islington and for the first time has been extended to include the London Borough of Hackney.
By working together we can focus on finding the right families for children quicker and more effectively. Even if you are at the start of your adoption journey and just want information, please join us. We welcome people from all backgrounds; especially for our Black and mixed heritage children, and siblings groups from all ethnicities. Your personal experience of life can help an adopted child grow and encourage them to reach their potential and become healthy happy adults. Adoption is a great way to be a mum or dad and if you’ve been thinking about it for a while, come along, find out the facts – you have nothing to lose, but everything to gain.
ii Build Better Men continued from page 31 by the size of your car, wife, house and bank balance. We want to remind ourselves that the Christian faith ranks service to our neighbours as one of the most powerful ideals to which we can aspire� LifeBuilders’ flagship event – the National LifeBuilders Conference - takes place annually in November. While being “male-flavoured�, it is essentially a family event and the 22nd Conference takes place 1st – 3rd November 2013 at Wolverhampton Racecourse and Conference Centre, Dunstall Park, Wolverhampton WV6 0PE. Men, women and children are encouraged to attend and enjoy a fun-packed
Thinking About Adoption?
weekend. The conference agenda includes a three course evening meal complete with live music, poetic presentations and the LifeBuilders’ Unsung Heroes Awards. Youth sessions include basketball and football coaching and competitions. There will also be music, worship, drama and a number of workshops (male-only, female-only and mixed sessions) covering topics such as Black Muslims in Britain, pornography and domestic abuse. For those looking for bargains there will be stalls selling various goods and services as well as food for sale to cater for those peckish moments. Indeed if you wish to sell goods or services or simply promote your business you can contact LifeBuilders to secure stall space.
The National Director of LifeBuilders, Rev David Perrin said: “The local LifeBuilders groups are an integral part of our ministry. This is where the rubber meets the road, where our men meet other men at the point of their need. If we can build better men then those men can better serve their families, communities and each other. We are blessed to bless others� LifeBuilders operate under a registered charity and rely wholly on gifts, donations and the time of volunteer staff in order to function. If you would like to know more about the work LifeBuilders, the National LifeBuilders Conference or other LifeBuilders events please check the website www. lifebuilders.org.uk or send an email to info@lifebuilders.org. uk
You don’t have to live in north London to adopt through us
8FEOFTEBZ /PWFNCFS t QN o QN (panel discussion starts at 7pm) If you would like to hear all about adoption from the true experts, adoptive parents, adopted people and a BAAF representative, come along to our event at:
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For more information text Adoption followed by your email address to 66777 or email your name and address to info@adoptionnorthlondon.co.uk