Peter Gosbee (left) and Ernie Curry chat after a recent Saturday morning session of the That Man is You program at John Paul Centre in Antigonish. (Corey LeBlanc photo)

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A group of men have been spending Saturday mornings on a journey of self improvement.
They are participating weekly in the internationally-known That Man is You! program at John Paul Centre in Antigonish.
“It is amazing. I would recommend this to anybody, any man,” Peter Gosbee, one of the participants, said.
That Man is You!, as the initiative outlines, is an interactive men’s program focussed on the development of men in the modern world, which combines the best research from science with the teachings of the Catholic faith and the wisdom of saints to develop the vision of authentic men capable of transforming themselves, their families and greater society.
“There’s probably none of us out there that don’t have some part of our lives that needs some repairing,” Clarence DeYoung said when asking about his participation in the program.
“I just thought – from what I initially heard about it – it might be a good way to get on track on a few parts of my life that I would like to fix,” he added.
The 20 or so participants – ranging in age from mid-20s to early 90s – have committed their Saturday mornings since last fall to their journey. After enjoying a group breakfast, members participate in a learning session and discussion focussed on topics such “The Issue of Leadership,” “Clarity of Thought” and “Integrity of Action.”
The 26-week program, which is divided into two 13-week sessions, concentrates on the goal of “becoming a man after God’s own heart.”
“I think it confirms a lot of what I think a lot of us have already known. What I mean by that is we – we as men – in many cases we have failed ourselves, we have failed our families and we have failed society,” DeYoung said.
“This is a program designed to help us me become better leaders at home, at work and in our society,”
He noted several learning experiences, including ones related to marriage and families.
“There are not two people involved in a marriage, there’s three. If we don’t have God and the spiritual end of things it is going to be a struggle,” DeYoung said in recalling a comment made by another participant during a session.
“We need to continue to get the family back as being family because if you save the family you save the world,” he added.
For Gosbee, there also have been many learning experiences. Initially, he thought the program sounded “quite dense.”
“I thought there was going to be a lot of stuff that would be way over my head but I am amazed about how great and how simple it is,” he noted.
Gosbee missed the first session. When he made it to the second one, he was wowed.
“I have been there every week since. I look forward to it,” he said, noting it was “hard to explain” what he is getting out of it.
He said the sessions have taught him how men can be better leaders – both in society and within their families, including their church, community or workplace.
“We are inundated by television and other media with stuff – the pre-conceived notions of what a male leader is, but most of them are all failures – they’re down on their luck and the impression is given that to be successful you have to be a multi-millionaire,” he said.
“It has nothing to do with that. It is about reaching out and being kind to each other and helping each other along. If somebody is down and out, you give them a hand.”
Both men agreed an important part of the learning has been hearing the perspectives of other participants, who come from all walks of life.
“At the end of each session, we have a group discussion based on two questions that are asked. Everyone’s answers are going to be different because of their life experiences and what not,” Gosbee said, describing the group as “well-rounded guys.”
“The crux of the matter comes down to that they are really not that different from what you had because the goal in the end was still to try and be a better person,” he added.
DeYoung said it is great to hear from men with similar experiences.
“We know and realize that we are guilty of some of the things that are going on out there in our society.
“Unfortunately, it is a big, difficult thing to try and turn around,” he added.
DeYoung said there is “not a guy out there who couldn’t gain from these sessions.”
Gosbee agreed, describing each week as a “class,” where much is learned.
“That’s what it is because you have so much to learn and you cannot wait to see what that day is going to reveal to you because the more it reveals to you, it is actually revealing more about yourself that you are learning – probably stuff you never even knew you had,” he said.
There is still time to participant in the local program, which begins each Saturday morning at 7 a.m.
For information about That Man is You! visit www.thatmanisyou.org or call 735-2443.