Nga mihi o te wa kia koe me te whanau.
Greetings to you and your family.

TRACKS Outreach has connected with many like minded individuals and organisations over the last nine years. The latest is a growing network of providers and individuals met and connected with, at the inaugural Global Passageways World Rites of Passage gathering. Here are some of the links, check them out there are some amazing people here that we have learned from and consider friends and supporters.

Pathways to Manhood foundation Australia is one of our closest friends and supporting organisations.

Melissa Michaels has trained some of our facilitators and continues to inspire us with her movement based Rite of Passage program in Boulder Colorado.

The Mens Leadership Alliance has been training men for over twenty years in America and now is integrating fathers and sons events into their programs.

Global Passageways is a growing network of individuals and Organisations supporting the remebering and re-development of Rites of Passage all over the world.

TRACKS Outreach and my own business Pheye are interwoven as I make and manage the bulk of the Media for TRACKS within Pheye.

This includes, making promotional and event videos, photographs and graphics and updating the website...

As JayPheye, as some people are getting to know me, I am interested in many different creative genres, including semi-functional sculpture (Bachelor of Craft Art) live digital video art (VJ'ing) and soundmixing/recording.

Now thirty four, I am reaching a new dawning in myself, a new awareness of community and connection. Me and my partner Sacha have a daughter born in 2006 'Taimarama' a son born in 2008 'Koa' and are living in our new house and settling into living in Tui Community. (www.tuitrust.org.nz)

Searching for new, and remembering old ways.  

In May 2003 I attended the 'Pathways to Manhood' Foundation Australia Facilitator training in Sydney. This was exciting to learn about a brother organisation doing very similar work to us and a bit further down the road towards sustainable business model. 'Pathways to Manhood' have the vision to provide the opportunity for a Rite of Passage for 'every boy in Australia'.

June 2004 I went to Boulder, Colorado, to train with Melissa Michaels. Her five-week-long Rite of Passage Event, "Surfing The Creative" (www.bdanced.com) was attractive to me because of the way it integrates dance and creativity as tools to help young people find more of themselves.

Whilst working with Melissa in 2004 I arranged for her to lead a training here In New Zealand that would be hosted by TRACKS.That was an amazing time for five days March 2005. She returned for the second part of five levels of training this last Novemeber 2005. Both Trainings were in the Tui events Centre.

Jim and Melissa March 2005

The connection with Melissa continues to grow with plans for cross-cultural events in New Zealand, United States and India in 2006 and 2007

Following the "Creative Surf" in August 2004 I drove down to New Mexico into the Sangre de Christo mountains for a week-long youth leadership training with an international organisation, called "Global Family" - www.globalfamily.net

While in New Mexico and Colorado I began working with two motivated young visionaries named Jeremy Roske and Jonothan Davis. We had the vision of a touring group of performers, musicians and artists, who would travel and inspire youth to be all that they could, putting on performances and workshops with the theme of encouraging young peoples creativity.

This had its first manifestation as a tour of including the band 'Rapsody' with me coordinating the multi-media and New Zealand leg of the tour. We toured from Colorado, U.S.A., to India, then onto New Zealand in January thru April 2005. This initiative we called 'Voice of Youth'. In February 'Voice of Youth' were part of the managing group for 'Youth For Human Unity' a UNESCO - sponsored conference In India at an amazing place called Auroville, an international Community of several thousand people.

After India the VOY team returned to New Zealand and joined with TRACKS to launch the VOY NZ tour. With specially designed "Creative Empowerment" workshops and inspiring performances, the team travelled to youth centres and schools across the country.

TRACKS coordinated VOY in New Zealand - and it was thrilling and challenging to mix both creativity and performance with youth work. (www.thevoiceofyouth.org)

Mohua - Golden Bay, Aotearoa

In later 2005 I participated in a nationhood-building workshop - "Te Poumaomao" - at Onetahua Marae in Golden Bay.

Te Poumaomao is delivered by Takewai and Chris Murphy. The programme addresses and facilitates informed discussion on the state of race relations in Aotearoa - New Zealand.

This experience inspired me again with the beautiful culture that is Maori, and reminded me of how an intricate past informs our present.