NPA SOCA Community Dialogue 24 June 2023

ABOUT

A dialogue on where fathers find themselves in the home, in community and in the legal system...This is such a complex topic and not much is understood about it. Many homes are fatherless, many fathers are yearning to be a father, many mothers are angry with fathers and it is a vicious cycle, resulting in many wounded souls. Let us have the difficult conversation as to what led to this pandemic of absent fathers, how we can encourage fathers to be more involved and present to their children.

This is an interactive dialogue with amazing speakers covering a wide range of topics relating to fatherhood. Wherever you find yourself in this journey of fatherhood, do register to be part of it. Invite your father, your children's father (sharing is caring), your brother, your uncle, cousins. Ladies come too and learn how we can support men to be the fathers we need in community.

We have an incredible line up of amazing speakers:

• Bongwelwa Qandashe (Master of Ceremony): The Voice of the Father – where are the voices of the father in dialogue on Maintenance and childcare.
• Gerard Mohamed (Father and Marine Engineer): A father from humble beginning who rose to the top will be sharing about how he planned for the wellbeing of his children over 20 years (note his daughter Dr Ray Mohammed is a guest speaker in the August 2023 Community Dialogue celebrating Women). He will also cover the concept that a father needs to adjust his own standard of living so that his children are not compromised in the important years of their upbringing. As well as a discussion of Scott v Scott 1946 WLD 399.
• Cassie Carstens - Author and founder of The World Needs a Father
• Themba Baleni - Fathers connect: Will be sharing his own personal story of how he grew up without a father and committed to changing that reality for his children, by being present. A heart warming story on how change happens with us.
• Natalie Ruiters (Mediator La Poppie Mediations): Fathers in need of parenting plans / deed of settlements in divorce proceedings – how mediation can ensure father’s rights are upheld.
• Chris Eksteen (Father and Optometrist): Will be sharing his own personal story of being a single father to his son for many years and how he decided to surrender his RA to make sure his one son's education was taken care of during Covid. Sharing encouraging and practical ways to be an involved father and how he came up with a solution to financially support to his son despite the lockdown that crippled many.
• Daniel Den Hollander (Clinical Psychologist and Empowerment agent for change): We can't find our scripts!!! South African men in Post-Apartheid South Africa.
• Laurie Greyvenstein (Mediator Social Justice): The effect of cognitive biases on family relationships.

A FREE workshop and dialogue for all parents struggling in the court system with maintenance, care and access around their children. There will be a team of professionals facilitating various topics around the issues of men as fathers and in the legal system.

The invite is extended to all attorneys, paralegals, mediators, social workers and those working in the field of family matters. 

We are a community rising up to create the difference that is needed in our society.