about us
This men’s group was started in 2021 by two friends: Owen Fitzpatrick and Justin Preter. It began as a simple experiment to see what would happen if you got a bunch of men together in a room and tried being really honest with each other. Over the last 5 years, it has grown into a coalition of dozens of men committed to their own growth, to redefining masculinity, and to creating lifelong connections.
The Fireside Brotherhood, launched in 2026, is the next step in the evolution of this men’s collective. Our new membership system will allow us to put more time and effort into the structure and planning of the group, so we can expand into areas like community volunteering and multi-generational hikes and camping trips. In addition, the new hybrid online/in-person model will allow brothers from anywhere in the world to participate.
We meet every Thursday evening from 7-9pm PST, alternating between online and in-person at our West Seattle space. Activities include discussion, play, music jams, storytelling, boxing, dance, fires, cold-plunges, and more.
Across cultures and throughout history, men have gathered together to speak honestly about their lives, to challenge one another, and to support each other in becoming better men. Those spaces helped men reconnect with their strength, their responsibility, and their purpose.
Sadly, the modern world is severely lacking in these types of spaces for men.
The Fireside Brotherhood exists to help bring back that kind of space. Our mission is to build a culture where men support one another in becoming more grounded, more alive, and more responsible for the lives they are shaping.
If this calls to you, join us and come find your place by the fire.
our facilitators
Owen Fitzpatrick is a life coach, builder and artist, mushroom man, and divorced father of two.
A glassblower by trade, he worked in various studios around Seattle for a decade leading up to the pandemic. He also co-founded The Heart Center for Awakening in 2019, a yoga studio and healing arts center in SW Seattle. In 2022, he left full-time glassblowing to focus on his service-oriented work in the psychedelic realm and men’s work space.
His work now involves helping people come to a deeper understanding and love for themselves through transitional periods in life - through personal coaching, somatic and emotional awareness, plant medicine, and community-building.
Owen has attended numerous men’s retreats in the PNW and has been a facilitator at the Manifest Gathering on the Olympic Peninsula for the last two years. He blows glass and offers lessons in his free time (torus-glass.com) and enjoys camping and adventuring with his kids.
Stephan Thomas is a restorative justice practitioner, lawyer, and facilitator of men’s work who has spent the last two decades in the process of healing and transforming trauma into practical tools for growth and change.
Raised on the South side of Chicago, his work is grounded in lived experience, while also drawing from a range of disciplines, including Plum Village meditation, somatic and embodiment practices, yoga, breathwork, leadership coaching, and community building. He has participated in and led men’s rites of passage and is connected to a global brotherhood of men committed to growth and transformation.
He is a father and has been married for 18 years, during which he has experienced cycles of rupture, separation, and repair, and he continues to practice responsibility and accountability in his home life.
He believes that men change in the presence of other men who are committed to truth, responsibility, and growth, and that real transformation is built through consistent practice.