with 20 percent of single men now saying# they don't have any close friends,## and more than half of all men report feeling# unsatisfied with the size of their friend groups.

I recently traveled to Phoenix to take a# closer look at the implications of male## loneliness and how some men are confronting it.

QUINCY WINSTON, Professional Black# Men's Friends Group: A great way## GEOFF BENNETT: On a recent night in Phoenix,## a group of men gathered on a MAN: I am training for a half-marathon.

QUINCY WINSTON: Oh, good.

MAN: My first one ever.

MAN: Spend more time with fami he will be 91 this year.

QUINCY WINSTON: Make moments like thi where I can sit and talk and look# for ment GEOFF BENNETT: This friends group was# started by 38-year-old Quincy Winston.

After leaving the military in 2015, Winston# moved to Arizona with his wife, LaToya,## and started working as an I.T.

specialist.

But for# years, he says he struggled to make friends here.

Were you feeling lonely and disconnected?

QUINCY WINSTON: Definitely, especially when# an y.

And that lack of connection put me in a place# where I didn't know exactly what to do about it.

GEOFF BENNETT: So, in March of 2022,# Winston turned to the social media## platform Meetup and decided to invite# other men to a local restaurant.

QUINCY WINSTON: I think we went to# a restaurant called Pappadeaux's,## and I didn't know who would show# up or if anybody would s GEOFF BENNETT: Sounds nerve-racking.

QUINCY WINSTON: And it explanations and what they were looking for, I# found out we had a lot more coming in I thought.

GEOFF BENNETT: Seven men# showed up for that first event.

MAN: Are you guys warm?

GEOFF BENNETT: Which W You encouraged him to form this group.

LATOYA WINSTON, Wife of Quincy Winston:# Yes.

I wan like, outside of just us doing things# together all but I still felt like he needed# to have guy time and guy friends.

QUINCY WINSTON: Yes, she made it very# evident that I need to go make some frien GEOFF BENNETT: Go disappear for a little bit.

(LAUGHTER) Yes, the chicken needs a little bit more time.# I'm just grabbing the hot dogs right now.

GEOFF BENNETT: The men still meet# up about once a week for activi like this backyard barbecue.

Winston's# Meetup group now has nearl It speaks to the need for connection that your# group is that big.

I mean, is that how you see it?

QUINCY WINSTON: Yes, it does.

And with all the techn instantly with anyone anywhere, but, if you# notice, we don't talk as much.

We text more.## A lot gets lost in translation, because we# just don't have that physical connection.

ROBERT MONTGOMERY, Professional Black# Men's Friends Group: I'm the newest## member of the group, b GEOFF BENNETT: Connection is what 61-year-old# Robert Montgomery wa What motivated you to join this group?

ROBERT MONTGOMERY: My whole thing was, I said# I got tired of being basically isolated at home# all the time.

An myself.

And I got -- and I didn't -- I didn't like# that.

I was like, OK, no, I can't do this anymore.

(LAUGHTER) they get emotional support from friends every# week.

That's compared to 41 percent of women.

RICHARD REEVES, Author, "Of Boys and Men":# Sometimes, as men, we struggle to say, I need you.

GEOFF BENNETT: Richard Reeves is# the author of "Of Boys and Men:## Why the Modern Male Is Struggling, Why# It Matters, and What t What is driving male loneliness?

Why# do men have such a hard time forming## friendships and keeping them# as they progress through life?

RICHARD REEVES: You can't neglect# a friendship and expect it grow.

You have to work at it.

You have# to find the time.

An that many women are just better at doing# that and building it into their lives.

So, it's like a purpose.

GEOFF BENNETT: Reeves four decades, there's been a st RICHARD REEVES: But men under the age of 30, 15# percent say they don't have a clos that's up from 3 percent in 1990.

So we have# a really difficult challenge now of helping## men to find places, spaces and ways to be with# other men and to sustain those male friendships.

GEOFF BENNETT: Last year, the U.S.# surgeon general issued an advisory## outlining the devastating health# effects of loneliness and isolation, including increased risks for heart# disease, strokes and dementia.

And while men make up slightly less# than 50 percent of the U.S. population,## they now account for nearly# 80 percent of all suicides.

RICHARD REEVES: I think these statistics on young# male isolation and, relatedly, of suicide r is part and parcel of this displacement# that we see of time away from friendship.

GEOFF BENNETT: What should we be# doing to reverse these trends?

RICHARD REEVES: We do need to be# intentional abou We need to be intentional about# combating against male loneliness,## and that we have to create spaces that# are not going to create themselves.

GEOFF BENNETT: That's at the heart of Men's# Sheds, a nonprofit that began in Australia in## the 1990s and now has 27 locations# across the country, the goal here,## to reach older men, who now have the# highest rate of suicides in the U.S. PHIL JOHNSON, U.S. Men's Sheds Association: I had# no idea other men like myself, when the from work, they lose their work friends, and then# most men struggle to get a circle of new friends.

GEOFF BENNETT: Seventy-four-year-old# Phil Johnson has helped start several## Men's Sheds around Minneapolis.

A couple of# times a month, t together to both work on projects# and to simply sit around and chat.

PHIL JOHNSON: Men feel more open about# talking to guys like themselves about## health concerns they may have.

So# the research shows over and over## again that men do best when they're doing# something and they can do it together.

GEOFF BENNETT: It's a chance for men# to share a laugh, but also seek advice.

PHIL JOHNSON: We tackle some# tough problems, like suicide,## which is higher in retired men.

We have had three# men that I know of that have lost their spouses,# and there's always going to be somebody# else in the group who can say, hey,## here's how I did it, here's some ideas,# here's something you should try to d QUINCY WINSTON: And know you're not alone.

MAN: Yes.

QUINCY WINSTON: You have br a pack.

You have a t GEOFF BENNETT: Back in Arizona, I was# invited on a morning hike with Quincy## Winston's friend group, an outing# organized by 29-year-old Nick Crum who says joining the group# has exceeded his expectations.

NICK CRUM, Professional Black Men's Friends Group:# It's just grown so much.

And we meet so many quality people, so many people who# actually wan that we like to talk about, talk about our life,# build that genuine connection with one another.

GEOFF BENNETT: That's exactly what Winston# says he hoped for when he created the group.

QUINCY WINSTON: We need each# other, and we need to support,## uplift, encourage and motivate# other men to seek friendship.

GEOFF BENNETT: Quincy Winston now wants to# expand his friend group beyond the Phoenix area,## so meet-ups like this one can become# more common for men across the country.

QUINCY WINSTON: Figure out what we# can do to bring people together.

GEOFF BENNETT: For the "PBS NewsHour,"# I'm Ge