Time to talk about the real business of life…people. Ten years ago, I attended a conference in Pretoria. Cassie Carstens told of his visit to the refugee camps in Tanzania. He was doing leadership training. Curious about why the people were at these camps, he interviewed a few people…I was horrified and deeply touched by what he learned. You can watch Cassie telling the story here: ((8) Plug ‘n Play Module 1.1: The TWNAF story – YouTube)
This encounter had a life-changing impact on Cassie. There was a clear message from this encounter in Tanzania. The biggest problem in Africa is FATHERLESSNESS. Not poverty, not crime but fatherlessness. His visit to the refugee camp was 20 years ago, in 2002. From there Cassie was instrumental in starting a movement called “The World needs a Father”, or TWNAF in short. Subsequent research on the topic of fatherlessness exposed the magnitude of the problem.
As Stephan Baskerville from Howard University stated, “Virtually every major pathology has been linked to fatherlessness. Violent crime, drug and alcohol abuse, teen pregnancy, suicide – all correlate more strongly to fatherlessness than any other single factor.”
If this does not grab your attention, look at the following stats (www.fatersforlife.org)
- 63% of suicides come from fatherless homes
- 70% of juveniles in state operated institutions came from fatherless homes
- 40% of all children do not live with their biological fathers
- 85% of children with behavioural problems come from fatherless homes
- 71% of children who do not finish school come from fatherless homes
For us at CoffeeLift, our business is a vehicle through which we can have influence. Not only for our families, but for the wider world. We want to leave the world better.
When we started our CoffeeLift journey we met many baristas and delivery drivers. We quickly realised that so many of them comes from a fatherless generation. Most of them never knew a dad. How do we become a father to our children without the guidance and example of a good father? How do we help to break the cycle of hurt that continues from generation to generation?
The coffee industry has an opportunity to impact and influence people. The people in our stores…our baristas, roasters and even the delivery drivers that we meet. We want to help you do this by distributing the material created by TWNAF over the last 20 years.
TWNAF is now active in more than one hundred countries. It has grown and has an influence in countless people’s lives.
It can have influence in yours and the people close to you. We partnered with TWNAF because we have personally experienced the difference it made to our own families.
The fatherhood principles taught by TWNAF are based on universal principles derived directly from the interaction God the Father had with His son Jesus Christ. It is insightful and life changing. The material they developed is now available in bite size videos freely available that allows for a quick 5-minute break with questions afterwards. Find it here: Resources | The World Needs A Father (twnaf.com). Ideal for a brief discussion with your crew before the day starts.
Join us on this journey and learn more about what it means to be a good father.
