Trail Life USA Blog

Stephen Ashton

Stephen Ashton is the National Director of Marketing for Trail Life USA and serves as an adjunct professor at Clarks Summit University and Anchor Christian University. Prior to his work at Trail Life, he spent 15 years working with at-risk youth in residential therapeutic wilderness programs and served as the Vice-President of the Wilderness Road Therapeutic Camping Association. An author and a speaker, he has written for journals and published a book chronicling the foundations of therapeutic camping. He frequently speaks on the topics of fatherhood, biblical masculinity, outdoor education, and wilderness therapy. Stephen lives in South Carolina with his wife and 4 sons.

Stephen Ashton Feb 22, 2021

Mentoring, Let Boys be Boys, Masculinity

Letting Boys be Boys in a “Toxic” Culture

No matter what our culture says, boys and girls are different. Discussions about “toxic masculinity,” a blurring of gender lines, fewer and fewer fathers in the home, and the watering down or extinction of programs that train and equip boys to become men have left too many boys frustrated, fearful,…

Stephen Ashton Feb 14, 2021

Parenting, Let Boys be Boys, History

Herbert Hoover: A Boy's Bill of Rights

There are two jobs for American boys today. One is being a boy. The other is growing up to be a man. Both jobs are important. Both are packed with excitement, great undertakings, and high adventure.

Stephen Ashton Jan 27, 2021

Raising Godly Boys

3 Lessons Every Boy Must Learn

“The greatest tribute a boy can give to his father is to say, ‘When I grow up, I want to be just like my dad.’ It is a convicting responsibility for us fathers and grandfathers. . .The greatest legacy one can pass on to one's children and grandchildren is a legacy of character and faith.” - Billy…

Stephen Ashton Jan 10, 2021

Mentoring, Masculinity, History

Theodore Roosevelt: Character and Success

Bodily vigor is good, and vigor of intellect is even better, but far above both is character. In the long run, in the great battle of life, no brilliancy of intellect, no perfection of bodily development, will count when weighed in the balance against that assemblage of virtues, active and passive,…

Stephen Ashton Oct 28, 2020

Let Boys be Boys, Troop Adventures, Troop

Jim's Daniel Boone Friction Flamed Coffee

The boys came prepared in teams of four for a highlight challenge of the Daniel Boone Base Camp Event. Each year Trailmen compete to build a fire tall enough to burn a marker string, boil water, and steep coffee for their Troopmaster to drink. This year, however the planning team added a twist. The…

Stephen Ashton Jul 08, 2020

Masculinity, History

The Power of Christian Young Men

A 1914 Address to the Christian Men's Association "When I think of an association of Christian young men I wonder that it has not already turned the world upside down. I wonder, not that it has done so much, for it has done a great deal, but that it has done so little; and I can only conjecture…

Stephen Ashton Jun 24, 2020

Service

Fallen Officers Honored for Greatest Sacrifice

On Peace Officer Memorial Day, Trailmen from Trail Life USA Troop TN-0101 in Clarksville, TN got word that the ceremony to honor local officers had been cancelled due to Coronavirus. Without any delay, the Troop chose to conduct a wreath-laying ceremony at the Clarksville Police Department’s…

Stephen Ashton Apr 27, 2020

Parenting

A Prescription for Adventure

"Play is often talked about as if it were a relief from serious learning, but for children, play is serious learning.” -Fred Rogers

Stephen Ashton Mar 30, 2020

Mentoring, Parenting, Let Boys be Boys, Masculinity

3 Keys to Growing Confident Men of Character

1. Cultivate Relationships Boys need dads who remember the world of backyard matchbox cars. Who can recall the time when dirt roads were carved from mulch beds, rocks became doughnut shops, cars drove to the tops of trees, and perils awaited in the grass jungles.