Jarvis Cooper, pastor and founder of Faith Ministries, speaks during a past event at Faith Ministries in Columbus.
The Republic file photo
The speakers at an upcoming workshop for male teens will be the attending young people themselves. Pastor Jarvis Cooper never has been comfortable with adults or groups telling teens what they need — especially when he firmly believes young people can clearly make known their desires.
“We first desire to understand rather than to be understood,” Cooper said of the organizers. “That’s much more important than us bringing our mindsets to young men. One of our opening questions will be, ‘What does it mean for you to be a man?’”
He referred to “Growing Men: A Workshop for Young Men Ages 14-18” from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. March 23 at Faith Ministries, 5103 W. State Road 46. The free event with lunch served is the local Faith Ministries’ effort to learn what male teens need from mentors to help the teens to live spiritually and emotionally healthy and prosperous lives.
And it marks the ministry’s official public kickoff of its aim to come alongside young men for wide-ranging support.
Cooper, long a minister with a vision beyond traditional Christian boundaries, emphasized that this workshop is for teen males of any belief, faith, or no particular faith at all. He and Faith Ministries demonstrated that same broad, open-arms principle when they dedicated a meditation garden in May. Those strongly supporting that project and speaking at the dedication included local Hindus.
Plus, Cooper’s church regularly has hosted yoga sessions when other Christian ministries sometimes have been skittish about such activities.
“With this workshop, we seek to collect (information) rather than to correct,” Cooper said.
And his team of facilitators seem as excited as he is to reach out to the younger set.
Lanre Ige, one of the organizers of the event, likes the concept and the plan for the gathering.
“It is an opportunity for us as a church body to give back through partnering with other men to provide mentoring and other resources for the youth in our community in order to enable stability within their lives as they grow into contributing adults,” Ige said.
Event leaders have reached out to a range of entities to spread the word about their mentoring hopes. Those organizations include Foundation For Youth, IU Columbus, Mental Health Matters and others. That link is significant because one aim of mentors is to connect young people to a broad range of local resources to aid their growth and maturity.
“If we can take care of the root (of things), the fruit will take care of itself,” said Cooper, sounding very much like the national personal development workshop leader that he is as president and chief executive officer of Envision Organization Consulting Inc.
Plus, he also serves as an affiliate faculty member of executive development at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. So he relates to the world far beyond ministry circles.
In fact, his work experience is just one reason why this workshop will carry no direct reference to God. Instead, materials and facilitators will use a broader term such as “higher power” to make discussions accessible to all faiths.
“That’s about not allowing words to get in our way,” Cooper said. “If someone can label you, they can limit you.”
Ideally, he said mentoring of young men could broadly encompass the areas of self esteem, learning to love oneself, and how to connect with others beyond social media. Moreover, workshop organizers want to encourage teen participants to prepare to mentor younger males coming up behind them.
“That’s important,” Cooper said, “because one of the best and fastest ways to become a learner is to become a teacher.”
About the workshop
What: “Growing Men: A Workshop for Young Men Ages 14-18.” A free event (with lunch served) to learn what male teens need from mentors to help them to live spiritually and emotionally healthy and prosperous lives.
When: 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. March 23.
Where: Faith Ministries, 5103 W. State Road 46, Columbus.
Registration: eventbrite.com, search for “Growing Men Workshop”.
Information: Lanre Ige at 812-374-8021 or [email protected].
