The Neighbrohood aims to build an entrepreneur network for KC men, leader says

Sunday’s debut public event from The Neighbrohood is about generating fellowship and conversation among young professionals, entrepreneurs and any other men working to make Kansas City thrive, Patrick Green said.

“Our vision in that is to see Neighbrohood as a place for brotherhood, and our mission is to be change agents that strengthen men through community,” said Patrick Green, president of the Neighbrohood.

Set for 3 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. Sunday at Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Kansas City, 1709 Walnut Street, Kansas City, MO 64108, the event is a collaboration between Green and such organizations as Black Privilege, The Know Joey? Foundation, AdHoc Group Against Crime and Heartshaped Clothing. It met its RSVP goal of 130 attendees earlier this week, Green said.

The Neighbrohood began in 2012 as a Bible study and men’s life group led by Anthony Taylor and Greg Ealey, pastors at Paseo Baptist Church, Green said. Two years later, Taylor left to plant a church in Oklahoma, but life group members, including Green, agreed to continue their fellowship.

“We arrived to where we are today, doing something even more so impactful for just men in general and not just a hub for people that believe the same,” he said, adding that the Neighbrohood is in the process of achieving 501(c)3 status as a nonprofit.

The group builds on three mottos: Share life, live life and give life, Green said. Sharing life occurs when Neighbrohood members “have dialogue around real-life subject matters to really allow people to release things they might be going through,” he added. Men can receive support and encouragement as well as connections to resources for job placement.

Living life occurs when the Neighbrohood gathers for fellowship, which sometimes includes bowling or a pickup game of basketball, he said.

Giving life occurs when members serve their community, Green added. Through partnerships with such organizations as the clothing line Heartshaped Clothing, the Neighbrohood serves alongside the community to provide fellowship as well as necessities like free water and food.

Green’s hope is that men involved in the Neighbrohood will gravitate toward these concepts and apply them to their daily lives, he said. He also hopes the Neighbrohood can continue to be a place for men to open up and share what’s on their mind, he added.

“A lot of men have had a lot of mental illness, and we feel like a source for [men with] mental illness is really just creating a hub where people can vent and just basically get some things off [their chests] that they probably never shared before,” Green said. “It’s just bottling up and tearing them up inside, and as they release that, to me, they are along the path of healing.”

Ultimately, Green hopes the Neighbrohood can help men “capture who they are and their purpose,” he said, adding that part of the Neighbrohood’s fellowship and mentorship involves encouraging men as fathers.