Name: Kasai Guthrie
Profession: Founder, We Need Our Fathers / Youth and Family Specialist
Age: 17
One Word That Describes You: Teen-preneur
There are five states between Delaware and Florida, but for Kasai Guthrie the distance from his father seemed to extend much further. At the age of 4, Kasai’s father moved to Florida, and for many years it was distance that kept his father from being able to see him. Two years ago, in 2013, Kasai’s father moved back to the Philadelphia area, which was much closer to Newark. About 35 miles separates Newark from Philadelphia, and Kasai was overwhelmed with joy by the chance to be so close to his dad. In his mind, he knew exactly how things would end up. He would make up for lost time, his father would attend his basketball games, and they would spend hours talking about sports, girls, and all the things fathers and sons discuss. However, things didn’t exactly pan out that way.
“I thought that when he moved closer we would have this great relationship, like the ones my friends have with their dads,” Kasai tells BE Modern Man. “A week went by, then a month went by, and then several months went by, with no real involvement.” Crushed and defeated, Kasai’s life began to unravel.
The confident, strong, smart leader, who excelled in the classroom and on the basketball court, began to lose control. Soon depression and anger crept up inside of Kasai, which left everyone that knew him in shock. “My expectations were extremely let down,” says Kasai. “It caused my whole life to spiral out of control. I lost the scholarship to my private school, became angry, disrespectful, and so depressed I was borderline suicidal.”
Through counseling, prayer, and his own strength, Kasai was able to forgive his father for being absent from his life. Realizing that many of his peers are going through the same struggles, Kasai began his climb back to leadership, and launched We Need Our Fathers, a mission that he hopes will change the lives of kids just like him.
There are
things being done to connect youth with their fathers, but often times it is the execution piece that needs adjusting. Kasai’s organization, We Need Our Fathers, hopes to address this through promoting strong role models for young adults.”Most of the statistics and work done in this area is adult-focused,” says Kasai. “Breaking the mold as a youth expert in this industry is trend setting, yet vital to really move us forward.”Read more on page 2…
Reversing the focus, Kasai has turned one of the darkest moments of his life into a tool to reach other young adults. “At the risk of being ridiculed or made fun of, I allowed myself to be completely transparent, shedding tears and all, to save and help others,” Kasai tells BE Modern Man. By taking the risk and opening up his pain to the world, Kasai has been able to reach people who are going through similar things. “When you put your message out there, it will find the people who need it, and they will gravitate to it.
Me and my mom get inbox messages constantly from youth and mothers asking us to help them either establish the relationship with the father, or help the child deal with the negative emotions.” For some, knowing that they are not the only one going through this provides a place of comfort to begin the healing process.Still a young man, Kasai realizes that in order for him to succeed he will have to surround himself with other achievers, young and old. “Go after your dreams with a team because it is going to take more than just you alone to see the type of success you are dreaming of achieving.” And at 17 years young, Kasai is just getting started. At a younger age Kasai’s mother, Tamara Varella, planted an entrepreneurial seed inside her son that continues to grow. “I am working on We Need Our Fathers and another online company that teaches financial literacy and entrepreneurship to youth, from elementary school to high school. My goal is to help remove the financial literacy barrier so other youth can achieve their dreams.”
Able to provide a solution, Kashai hopes that his personal story helps change the conversation and stereotypes placed on the African American community. “This type of exposure is needed because it inspires others and changes the mindset of what’s really possible.”
You are never too old or too young to start something new. Kasai was able to take years of pain and channel them into a positive solution for young adults.” A BE Modern Man is a man, at any age, who pushes past the stereotypes, barriers, and negativity, to be the best man he can be, using the resources available to make it possible.”
The BE Modern Man team commends Kasai for showing the world that regardless of how you start off in life, you can make it through. The positive impact of We Need Our Fathers and Kasai Guthrie is instrumental in moving us forward.
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