In 1919, when DeMolay was first created, the world had indeed seen troubled times. Nations around the globe were recovering from the horrors of World War I, and the tens of millions of lives that had been lost. Americans looked to each other to reclaim some sense of strength and stability, embracing community activism and social institutions like never before. Membership in organizations like Freemasonry soared.

During this time, Frank Land, a Freemason in Kansas City, Missouri met a young man whose father had recently died. Land had hired 16-year-old Louis Lower to do odd jobs around the local Scottish Rite building, but soon he saw that the teenager needed more than employment: He needed the support of adult males, and a wholesome environment where he could learn skills, serve his community, and have fun. Many of Lower’s friends were also fatherless, and Land had an idea that could help them all. He had Lower round up eight of his friends, and together, they made plans for a boys club. The young men named themselves the Order of DeMolay in honor of Jacques DeMolay, a Templar Knight martyred in the Middle Ages for refusing to betray his friends. The first meeting was held on March 24, 1919, attended by 31 local boys.

DeMolay – and the other Masonic youth orders that followed, namely Job’s Daughters and Rainbow for Girls – was among a growing number of youth organizations in America in the 1920s, including church groups and clubs like the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts. But the Masonic youth orders were unique, in part because they incorporated symbolic rituals like the Ceremony of Light. Inspired by Freemasonry’s initiatic process, Land had a friend and fellow Mason write the ritual for two DeMolay degrees and a host of other ceremonies. Sure enough, the symbolism, pageantry, and solemnity ingrained in the youth order’s rituals captured the young men’s imaginations, and sealed the bond between them.

DeMolay’s rituals and welcoming environment immediately appealed to young men, who began joining in droves, and its lessons in virtues and good citizenship were readily embraced by American society. Chapters sprang up throughout the United States, then in Canada, and by the 1960s, around the globe. Today, it has enriched the lives of more than 1 million young men worldwide.

But its lessons don’t end with a discussion of morals. From the beginning, Land’s vision was to develop leadership skills in the young men by empowering them to lead themselves. The members elect their own officers to run meetings; discuss and vote on decisions; and plan their own activities. Older members act as mentors to younger boys.

Each chapter is sponsored by a local Masonic lodge or appendant group, which provides adult volunteers – who are both men and women, and needn’t have a Masonic connection – to serve as advisors. They’re integral to a chapter’s success, but their role is largely in the background, leaving the overall direction and operation of each chapter to the young members.

This approach prepared Avery Brinkley for his current responsibilities as DeMolay’s international master councilor. When Brinkley first encountered DeMolay in Southern California at age 14, he was “super shy,” he says. His cousin dragged him to an event, and at first, he didn’t consider joining because “I knew it would make me have to talk to other people.” Then he saw a public installation ceremony that featured the “arch of steel,” a processional and recessional framed by two columns of older DeMolays, who draw swords and hold them aloft in an arch. That did it, Brinkley says: “I was like, Where do I sign up?” He came up through Yorba Linda Chapter.

It’s funny to him to think back to a time when he was afraid of talking. Now, it’s one of his main responsibilities. At age 21, Brinkley is serving a one-year term as the head of the global organization of DeMolay International, traveling to chapters around the world to promote the youth order and celebrate the centennial. A little while ago he was in Boston manning the phones in a telethon fundraiser, then traveled straight to Ohio for the jurisdiction’s “WinterFest” convention, then a few days later headed to Paraguay for a special countrywide initiation: 100 new members were initiated in honor of DeMolay’s 100 years. Suffice it to say, his travel calendar is booked. (When he was installed in his office in June, he signed up for a frequent flyer account, and it took less than five months to rack up the 30,000 miles for gold status.) In any spare time, whether on the ground or up in the air, he works on his speeches, reviews the upcoming agendas for numerous committees, and replies to an ongoing stream of DeMolay emails. He spends hours each day discussing DeMolay business with his international congress secretary and leading adult advisor, and juggles conference calls scheduled across time zones with about nine youth committees.

“It’s a job,” he says. “I have to really have a good grip on time management. I have to make sure that I’m delegating.”

One of his primary initiatives is to create a year-round membership drive on the international level. He’s also passionate about improving the youth order’s use of social media and technology: DeMolay International launched an app in January, and has energized its social media presence, now posting daily on popular platforms like Instagram. The increased activity has already attracted new members, brought back others who had drifted away, and increased overall energy and enthusiasm for DeMolay. He’s also excited about launching a variety of member surveys, aimed at strengthening chapters and improving the DeMolay experience around the world. He and his fellow leaders are confronting the same question that Masonic lodges ask every day: How to evolve for modern times while still preserving what’s most important?

“We’re changing our marketing, and how young men find out about DeMolay,” Brinkley says. “We’re changing how the members get involved: They used to get together to play baseball, now they might play video games. But the experience they have in DeMolay, the bonds that they make – that’s not changing.”