Student leaders of Legion XII, a Christian men’s club and nonprofit that aims to teach young men what it means to be godly, are hoping to expand to other campuses after the new year. 

Founded by junior Luke Waters and other Hillsdale students, including club vice president junior Andriy Pasichnyk, the group hopes to recruit new club leaders from across the country while hosting a table at AmericaFest, an event hosted by Turning Point USA in Phoenix every December, according to Waters.

“Andriy and I will be there connecting with donors and the general Turning Point network, and then, the rest of the guys will be on the actual floor of the event, recruiting, talking to potential student leaders, young men who want to start organizations that form the whole man,” Waters said.

The mission of Legion XII is to help young men learn what true manhood looks like in a world  where many people in their generation do not know what it means to be a man, according to Jason Gehrke, assistant professor of history.

“There is an existential question in young men ages 15-25. They want to be good and do the right thing, and a lot of it is that they don’t have an inherent notion of sex and gender roles. Luke wants to help his peers understand this,” Gehrke said. “The young men who are finding Luke’s program are finding it because it responds to a need in themselves.”

The club, made up of 16 members, gathers once a week for a Bible study. Then, throughout the week, they meet to work on different physical skills, including sparring and kickboxing, according to freshman Christian Brossa, a member of Legion XII. 

“Everything that we do has a biblical connection,” Brossa said. “I think there’s nothing that we do that is separate from trying to be Christ-centered men.”

The four tenants of the club are virtue, valor, vision, and vigor, according to Luke Waters.

“The question is, what does it mean to be a biblical man? What does biblical manhood look like? And how do we actually restore that? And that’s the heart of this,” Waters said.

The fighting helps students improve their self-control and direct their natural inclinations toward gaining strength. The club has a handbook for its members to work through together over two years, according to Waters.

“They gather together once a week and read through that week’s chapter, there’s discussion questions and challenges,” Waters said. “They’re paired with an accountability partner who they meet with weekly and set goals with them. And then there’s multiple different combatives programs that all the guys work into.”

During Waters’ freshman year at Hillsdale, he started a Christian boxing club based on his club in high school. The initial mission of the club was to help Hillsdale students in a similar way to how he helped his peers through his club in high school. 

“We’re at Hillsdale College. This is the place where men should be being launched from, like arrows from a quiver,” Waters said. “I saw a lot of freshmen in my class when we first showed up, who started resting, drifting, because they had made it to Hillsdale. And I was like, ‘No, this is the time that we should be gearing up.’”

Waters joined the Kehoe Family Initiative for Entrepreneurial Excellence, Hillsdale’s entrepreneur fellowship run by Career Placement Associate Jennifer Lutz, to grow Legion XII. 

“Jen Lutz has been spectacular, very, very helpful,” Waters said. “She brings in a bunch of great business owners and entrepreneurs.” 

Through mentorship, Waters has been able to hone in on the mission of the club and understand what is necessary to expand that mission to other campuses, according to Lutz.

“I think one of the things that Luke is very clear on, and the reason this is getting traction, is he really understands the cultural problem with young men,” Lutz said. “He’s been working on that mission and the messaging so that it’s something that he can take and replicate in other places.”