About Us
The History of Heroic Youth
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Heroic Youth began in 2007 with the Mastering Knighthood Summit (formerly Knights of Freedom Summit) run by Emily and Richard Clawson.
Emily worked with American Youth Leadership Institute in creating the original Knights of Freedom club packets and trained dozens of club leaders before taking over the Summit. In 2012 Knights of Freedom Summit split off from American Youth Leadership and by 2014 it had become part of Heroic Youth. The primary shift was from a focus on statesmanship to that of Heroism. The Hero is central to all we do and teach.
In 2013 we added the long-awaited program for girls, Crowned with Virtue Summit run by Deborah and Jason Raymond who became the king and queen of Christathel. This program has been the needed addition to balance the teachings of Heroic Youth and enable us to spread the call for heroism to both girls and boys.
In 2017, the Raymonds were replaced by Amber and Jared Johnson who in turn became the king and queen of Christathel. In addition, the Crowned with Virtue and Mastering Knighthood Summits were combined into one spectacular two-day event.
Crowned with Virtue and Mastering Knighthood continue to work in tangent to raise a hero generation. In 2020, the Nielsens succeeded the Johnsons as the king and queen of Christathel.
American Youth Leadership Institute and all its clubs have been extremely impactful in our community and we are so grateful and humbled to continue the work that began there.
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Our Board of Directors
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The Heroic Youth Board of Directors was formed in November 2016 in order to support and increase this amazing movement of servant-leadership in our community, and to help it to spread. Members of the board include Kirk Graves (chairman), Sarah McKay (secretary), Richard and Emily Clawson, Kyla Beckstrand, and Krista Nielsen.
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Non-profit status
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In past years Heroic Youth has been a privately owned organization. We jokingly called it a “zero-profit company”. But that has finally changed! As of 2019 we are now officially a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization. We look forward to the security, stability, and longevity that this change will bring to Heroic Youth!
