Hannah Puma’s AYF experience began when she was a small child, running around Miniwanca as her mom worked at camp for multiple summers. She couldn’t wait to be a camper...

Ten members of the Mulcahy Fellowship gathered on the dunes of Miniwanca for their first retreat this month. The Mulcahy Fellowship is an initiative to intentionally honor, support, and uplift...

The National Leadership Conference roared back to life this summer after two years of virtual and abbreviated gatherings. NLC Co-Director Erin O’Brien said it was emotional to reconnect with youth...

Thank you to all who joined us Tuesday evening at Advancing Toward Our Best! We recorded the webinar for those who weren’t able to make it. We hope it provides...

Volunteers recently gathered in the crisp spring air at Miniwanca and Merrowvista to roll up their sleeves and prepare the sites for summer 2022. At Miniwanca, Director of Operations Griffin...

The 20th Donald Danforth Jr. Memorial Golf Tournament took place in St. Louis on May 9, raising $108,000 for scholarship funds to support youth attending American Youth Foundation programs. The...

For as long as she can remember, Carrie Hargreaves Smith was interested in a health care career. She loved math, science, and learning about all the human body’s intricate processes....

Upon joining City Year AmeriCorps, each member is presented with a red jacket, which they dedicate to a person, idea, or cause that inspires them to serve. Most people dedicate...

More than a dozen members of the American Youth Foundation staff recently completed Camp Mental Health Certification offered by Let’s Empower, Advocate, and Do. LEAD is a nonprofit dedicated to...

After years of leaning and disuse, the beloved Assembly at Miniwanca will see new life in 2023. Visitors to Girls Camp last year saw the nearly century-old building propped against...

One of Emily Jones Knuth’s fondest camp memories is serving as Quad Leader in eighth grade and again as a high school senior. She relished the chance to add the...

The American Youth Foundation has played a pivotal role in DD Danforth-Burlin’s life. The four-fold way of living has steered her through her youth as a Miniwanca camper and leader,...

Merrowvista Seasonal Staff are our best recruiters, so let’s see what we can do together! It’s time to engage your friendly, competitive spirit and win awesome prizes while helping recruit...

Jamie O’Hagin knows what it’s like to be the nervous new kid at camp. A bully tarnished her only prior camp experience, and she was worried she’d find the same...

The American Youth Foundation is committed to building equitable program communities and empowering youth to create equity in their own communities. Director of Community Life, Diversity, and Inclusion Ambrean Ford...

by Dana Rieck High school physics teacher Robert Pike works hard to learn his students’ names within the first three days of each semester, so they feel valued and appreciated...

Summer 2021 was filled with joys and challenges as the American Youth Foundation found new ways to welcome campers back to Miniwanca and Merrowvista in the midst of a pandemic....

Welcome to our Conversation Circle project. In this free online course, we will have the chance to form small groups to work through Brené Brown’s latest book, Atlas of the...