Founded in 1925, the American Youth Foundation (AYF) inspires people to discover and develop their personal best, to seek balance in mental, physical, social and spiritual living and to make a positive difference in their communities and in the wider world. AYF is a national organization with regional centers in Tuftonboro, New Hampshire, Shelby, Michigan and St. Louis, Missouri. We own and operate two year round youth development centers. Miniwanca is set on 360 wooded acres and a mile of private Lake Michigan shoreline. It has a residential capacity of almost 1,000. Merrowvista is located on 600 acres in the pristine Ossipee Mountains of New Hampshire.