We are a collective of men from diverse backgrounds committed not only to our own healing journeys but to bringing presence, attunement and energy to young men around the world. As youth mentors, we know that listening is more important than talking, that curiosity is more welcome than giving advice and that our attuned witnessing of a young man brings more good than our teaching ever could.

Sonz Youth is an extension of Sacred Sons, a men's organization providing transformational experiences in brotherhood for men around the world and a direct Beneficiary of the Sacred Sons Foundation 501(c)3. Powered by these strategic partnerships, we are committed to a 1:1 Program Model. This means that for every young man we enroll in our programs, we scholarship in a young man who cannot afford to participate.

Trevor Spring,

Founder and Director

Hi everyone and welcome to the Sonz Youth Program, I'm Trevor Spring. We continue to see that giving men the opportunity to mentor younger men and boys is an imperative part of the growth cycle of a man. It's an honor and pleasure to do this work alongside so many wonderful men. Today I'll share a bit about myself.

"Mentoring youth has been the main focus of my personal and professional life for over 5 years now. As I've deepened into this role over the years, and committed more to supporting young men, the experience has brought me further into my own development as a maturing adult man. What I call "the mentorship cycle" truly holds magic and I'm happy to say that it has improved me as a father, a partner, a leader and in my relationship to myself. It is very clear to me that parents are not meant to be everything for their children. Youth need a variety of positive influences. We can't do it all ourselves!! That's why I'm so passionate about the Sonz Youth Community. It truly is a safe haven where everyone can be accepted for exactly who and how they are. It's a place for parents to reflect and evolve, a place for young men to bring the inevitable growth challenges and choices they'll face as they become a man. It's everything I would have loved as a boy.

As a young man I experienced having a lot of peers, coaches and teachers around, but looking back I rarely felt seen or met by anyone who could be sincerely present with me and provide the focused support and healthy challenge that I longed for. Being a youth where everything looks ok on the surface can be extremely lonely, isolating and disorienting.

Looking back, I didn't know what I was missing but I was constantly missing the true presence from adults that I craved.

After nearly 20 years as a holistic fitness coach for adults, youth and companies, I stepped into men's work roughly 10 years ago...and eventually into facilitation. For the last five years I have run the Oahu chapter of Boys to Men Mentoring Hawaii as well as guided multiple Adventure and Rites of Passage weekends. My focus is now turned fully toward the Sonz Youth Program and our opportunities and challenges here.

I reside in Hawaii on the island of Oahu and am a 43 year old father of four; two children of my own and two step children. I am married and in a growth-oriented partnership that both challenges and supports me to grow as a person. I love surfing, mountain expeditions, surf skating, circling up, playing music around the fire with my friends and our kids, and volunteering on friend's farms.

The Sonz Youth Program is a combination of all of my personal and professional experiences. I'm so excited for you to join the community and hope to connect with you soon."

Jason Blackowiak, Lead Mentor + Enrollment Coordinator

Hi, I'm Jason. I don't recall a time that I wasn't feeling the call to work with youth. But up until recently I had zero capacity to hold space for young men. When I learned to hold space and make time for me and my feelings and how to ask for help then I started seeing how I could support the youth. It took me 40 years to figure that out. I want to provide young men with a safe, supportive and accepting space so that they may find that freedom far sooner and allow themselves to step into who they want to be.

My goal and my hope is to usher in the wave of our future where women don't feel afraid to walk alone. Where it's accepted for men to express their feelings and ask for help. Where a man and men can hold space for another man with love and support. It's long passed time for a solid and healthy wave of men to come forward and bring the change that is needed.

Dustin Morby, Lead Mentor

Howdy, I’m Dustin, a Lead Mentor and the Chief Heart Officer for Sonz Youth. I am honored that I get to fulfill these rolls and do this work with such a playful, loving, and inspiring team. At in person events I am often a wild card person, able to fill whatever roll is needed in the moment, but my truest passions are found in ceremony and play. Online, I mentor cohorts a few times a year, work behind the scenes, and am creating on a few specialty offerings including I’m so grateful for them and now do this work as a way of honoring their impact on my life. An incomplete list of random things about me: I am a multipotentialite, proud amateur, and forever student. I performed up to 8 times a week for over a decade in front of audiences ranging 3-3000. I graduated from Improv Olympics Chicago, being honored with a spot on a house team/Harold team. I attended Native Roots Herbalism School studying Ancestral Folk Healing and Herbal Medicine. I’m a Certified Dowser, a Certified Laughter Yoga Leader, and an Ordained Minister. I’ve been taught or self taught and work with over 150 modalities, and I incorporated them all into one system called Intentionalism. I once lost 170lbs. I spent 6 years living a nomadic lifestyle and now gratefully live in a beautiful home surrounded by gardens in Santa Fe, NM. I am currently studying at New Mexico State University Global, in a program perfect for my varied interests. 3/5 Manifesting Generator. Gemini Sun/Aries Moon/Scorpio Rising.

Brett Fleisher, Lead Mentor

A life long pursuer of the expressive arts and authentic expression Brett has traveled down many paths; as an actor, writer, musician, filmmaker, youth educator, camp counselor and reiki practitioner.

In the summer of 2018 Brett became certified in Psycho Nuero Energetics which employs the Polyvagal Theory to release traumatic imprints in the body and regulate the nervous system.

Brett founded The Yummy Heart that fall and loves working one on one with people of all ages to help guide them back into their bodies. Brett has been developing a youth enrichment program of his own called "The Phoenix Assembly" which is designed to integrate social/emotional learning, body regulation techniques and sensory development to supplement institutional learning in a healthy and balanced way. When held in a container of safety and trust, Brett believes the body knows how to re-calibrate and heal itself. His mission is to support others by gently guiding them back to their natural state of love, relaxation and social engagement.

Nick Lacey, Lead Mentor

Nick Lacey grew up in and around New York City and credits his birthplace for a deep love of culture, athletics and people. Both English and Spanish were spoken in Nick’s childhood home, a tradition that continues today. In fact, the Spanish language has always been a vital connective tool both personally and professionally. Four years ago, Nick moved to San Diego to serve the community as a Physical Therapist and explore the West Coast.

Nick’s outdoor interests include paddle boarding, running, hiking and skiing. When not reading or exploring new music, you may find Nick writing hip hop and poetry. A major theme of his writing is Identity, specifically through creative storytelling of underrepresented American Peoples.

Florjan Gjolaj, Lead Mentor

Hello my name is Florjan!

I'm blessed to be a part of this service work. Work done with the express intention to serve, and support these young men. Work that impacts not just the youth, but their friends, family and ALL of their relationships. Im here for all of it, with a deep sensitivity and attunement, and a great heart that loves to serve and play.

I am a homemade pizza enthusiast, a tattoo artist and proudly of Albanian Heritage, living in Nelson, BC, Canada. I am exactly where i need to be!

Chris Sawey, Lead Mentor

Chris Sawey is a 15+ year wilderness guide, educator, contractor, and poet. His love for Art and Adventure is a through-line in everything he does. He has guided hundreds of men and young men in backcountry adventures and is Wilderness First Responder trained and certified through NOLS. In 2019 after his HGTV Host debut, he walked away and sold it ALL to buy an island in Alaska to build a one-of-a-kind off-grid retreat center for men to heal and feel. His North Star is being the man and mentor his little boy needed growing up. His personal Mission is to guide men back to their wild and creative hearts. and build beautiful and unique spaces where everyone wants to be and anyone can be a part of.

“I dream of a world where every young adult knows in their heart they belong and come to know the feeling of “Coming Home."

Eric Kayanan, Lead Mentor

Eric Kayanan is a multicultural, bilingual mentor deeply connected to his work through both his professional and personal experiences. As a BIPOC father who lost his own dad at a young age, Eric understands the importance of strong role models and offers support with a genuine, heartfelt approach.

He’s well-versed in working with neurodivergent youth, creating environments that are inclusive and supportive. His yoga certification adds an extra layer to his mentoring, blending mindfulness and holistic health to this approach.

Eric’s devotion to this mentoring work is fueled by his deep passion and desires for change. He firmly believes that it takes a village to raise a child and that nurturing, guiding, and celebrating our young men is key to making a broader impact. His commitment to this community effort and his dedication to helping boys develop into confident young men highlight his deep personal investment and drive.

Adam Jackson,

Director of Visioning and Co-Founder Sacred Sons

Adam Jackson holds a vision for ushering brotherhood to the forefront of our community as a means for conscious healing. He is a Co-Founder, Director of Operations, and the Voice of Sacred Sons.

Adam is a true renaissance man—with his education in science, background in art and music, and ongoing exploration of love, travel and experiential community building.

Prior to Co-Founding Sacred Sons, Adam held a 12 year career as a Sr. Mechanical Engineer working in the environmental water quality industry. He led product development the CastAway-CTD™, a patented instrument used to monitor the effects of climate change on ocean currents.

Adam was also the vocalist for the progressive hardcore band Twelve Tribes. From 2000 to 2007 the band toured throughout North America and Europe with fellow bands Killswitch Engage, Poison the Well, etc. Twelve Tribes released 3 full length albums and also appeared on MTV’s Headbanger’s Ball to debut the video for their most notable track ‘Venus Complex’.

Fatherhood has set Adam on a heart-opening journey of conscious parenting and commitment to living one’s truth. Adam is devoted to continual inner-exploration and has the intuitive ability to connect others to their path and purpose. His spiritual practices have led him to Inipi Ceremony (Sweat Logde), men’s circles, plant medicine ceremonies, and transformational gatherings.

He is walking his spiritual path with the power of self-love and the intention to raise the collective consciousness of our human family.

Neil Christiansen,

Bridge Builder, Director of the Sacred Sons Foundation, Co-Founder Sacred Sons

...holds himself and all men closer to their loving essence through deepening their connection to presence and source.

Living from a place steadfast commitment and tilling the soil of future harvests that support the mission of Sacred Sons, the substratum of its core team, and every individual yearning for real connection in brotherhood. Neil’s embodiment training in organizational guidance and visioning was forged through ten years of developing a non-profit organization in the jungles of Panama to support indigenous communities through education. As a founding partner and Sacred Sons Foundation’s Director his contributions span through all moving parts and generations of this brotherhood.

Neil is here to walk alongside his brothers in remembering the call of love and its teachings.

The Sacred Sons Foundation 501(c)3

Sacred Sons Foundation is devoted to a thriving future. We are a direct giving organization, which means that 100% of donations raised for The Sonz Youth Program go to the program.

We are committed to making scholarships available to half of the participants of the Sonz Youth Program. This impact ripples through families and communities for generations to come.

Connect to Sacred Sons Foundation

Sacred Sons

Sacred Sons' mission is co-stewarding the return of the father archetype to this planet through men's relational and physical training.

Sacred Sons is the birthplace of Sonz Youth and has a reciprocal relationship where Men from the community step into deeper contribution through Mentoring, parents can find support for their sons and young men who develop through the youth program can join the men's program.

Connect with Sacred Sons