Growing up with an absent father can be challenging in the best of times. Jaco van Schalkwyk experienced the struggles of a childhood without his dad. “I grew up without someone being there for me and guiding me through some of the most important questions that a boy has,” Van Schalkwyk says. Now, he’s gathering a team of mentors with The Character Company to break the cycle of absent fathers in South Africa.
Research has shown that approximately 42% of South African children live in female-headed households, and 21% with neither parent. Children without positive role models are more likely to struggle to form healthy relationships and have behavioural problems. Misguided masculinity can lead to men becoming detached from their own emotions. These are often catalysts to issues like mental health problems, stress, and substance abuse. In the worst cases, it can result in gender-based violence. “There is a hunger in the generation that is currently neglected by us as a society, that really have a desire to have someone in their lives,” Van Schalkwyk says.
In 2013 he founded The Character Company, a long-term mentorship programme to help children develop into honourable and positive men. Volunteers work with young boys to teach them life skills and instill principles of respect, honesty, self-discipline, courage, and kindness. During weekly gatherings, mentors and children participate in activities in line with the organisation’s values. Multiple camps throughout the year provide team building opportunities where the boys learn to trust each other and their mentors. Through this, they also develop the ability to confide in other men and open up about their experiences and struggles. At the end of the programme, a number of the children can go on to become mentors themselves.
So far, The Character Company has changed the lives of over 100 boys in South Africa, providing role models to help them grow into well-rounded adults. “We have men out there that really care,” Van Schalkwyk says. “They have the ability to impact the next generation of boys that will know how to deal with the issues society faces today.”
Footage by The Character Company, Sandmann Productions, and Jozi Film Festival was used in the creation of this film.
