DeMolay International (also known as the Order of DeMolay), founded in Kansas City, Missouri in 1919, is an international youth fraternity for young men. DeMolay derives its name from Jacques DeMolay, the last Grand Master of the Knights Templar. It is a Masonic-sponsored youth organization for boys ages 12-21, and no relation to a Mason is required in order to join.

DeMolay currently has about 36,000 members in the United States and Canada and several thousand more worldwide. It uses a model of mentoring; adult men and women called advisors, often past DeMolay members or fathers and mothers of DeMolays, mentor the active Demolay members. The mentoring focuses on the development of civic awareness, leadership skills and personal responsibility.

Founded by a Freemason, DeMolay is closely modeled after Freemasonry, and like Freemasonry, members are initiated into DeMolay through ritual and an allegorical program. However, it is not directly connected to Freemasonry. DeMolay is considered to be part of the Masonic Family along with other youth groups like Job’s Daughters, and the Rainbow Girls. Like Rainbow Girls, a young man does not need to have a family tie or sponsor in a Masonic organization to join DeMolay.

DeMolay has seven Cardinal Virtues, which are the soul structure of what they follow.

Those Cardinal Virtues are:

• Love between a parent and child (Filial Love)
• Reverence for sacred things
• Courtesy
• Comradeship
• Fidelity
• Cleanness
• Patriotism