A Vision Forward

FROM OUR FOUNDER & CEO

Last year was one of the toughest our mission has faced in more than 30 years. With schools closed and finances strapped, we were staring down a year of presumed zeros.

Zero programs. Zero revenue. Zero impact.

Yet, our small-but-mighty team beat the odds. After a year of hard work and hard-won hope, out of seemingly nothing, we created something new. We laid a path forward.

We delivered more than 100 programs, all of them freshly invented or dramatically reimagined for the virtual space. In all, we impacted 4,500 students, educators and leaders with our message of character.

Zero of those wins would have happened without you. We depended on our donors like never before, your contributions making up the vast majority of our revenue last year. You gave generously so that we were able to offer many of our new character programs to students and educators for free. In the end, we raised more than $2 million in support for our mission, surpassing our revenue goal in June’s final hours.

Perhaps one of the most surprising things to come out of last year’s chaos and confusion, more important than any stand-alone stat, was a renewed clarity of vision. At Youth Frontiers, we envision a future where our next generation of leaders is grounded in character — for we believe there is no more powerful change agent for making our world a kinder, more civil and respectful place to live.

To that end, we are broadening our work with youth, now meeting them wherever they are: in schools, other nonprofits, youth groups and beyond. This year, we’re fully booked for our classic student retreats, averaging two a day, and our new programs, like Character Academy for Generation Z, are growing. Our programs are gaining momentum again.

As part of our mission’s expanded vision, we are calling adults to character: the teachers, parents and leaders who serve as kids’ role models and who shape our communities. We’re doing this with our Elements of an Engaged Educator series, our Parent Academy, our Geometry of a Leader series … the list goes on.

We’re entering these frontiers, some familiar and some new, with a mission stronger, more impactful and more needed than ever. For when youth and adults alike — all of us — act with kindness and courage and respect, then our community and our nation will become better places for all.

Thank you for taking action. Thank you for supporting us when we needed you most. And thank you for believing in our Vision Forward.