Men face an uphill battle. From pressures at work, at home and within society, men struggle to build community and develop deep relationships with other men.
“Thirty-one percent of Catholic men that go to Mass on Sunday do not have one close personal friend. That’s data from a survey conducted in 2016 by Matthew Christoff. The data is probably a little bit worse now,” Dan Donaldson, head of the Catholic ministry Heroic Men, told Our Sunday Visitor.
Donaldson and the organization he leads want to change that narrative.
“Heroic Men exists to help men grow in faith and brotherhood, in Jesus Christ. We hope to ignite, empower and equip ministry to men all over the world,” Donaldson said. “Our ultimate purpose is getting men to gather together at the local parish level in their local communities, to gather for prayer, formation and brotherhood with one another.”
The group offers a variety of resources toward that goal, including online videos, one-on-one coaching and an annual summit. Donaldson has been with Heroic Men since its founding by the Catholic Men’s Leadership Alliance in 2018 and became the group’s CEO in January 2025.
A crisis of identity
Ultimately, Donaldson believes that the crisis men face today stems from not understanding who they are as men.
“The biggest problem is that we don’t know who we are,” Donaldson said. “We don’t know our identity — that we are beloved sons of our Father in heaven, who cares for us so much that he gave us his only Son so that we could be with him forever.”
Over the years, the Heroic Men platform has amassed a robust library of videos and workshops that people can access for free on its website or the Heroic Men app.
“We just have tons of resources and content for men,” Donaldson said. “We wanted to put it all on the platform so that men would have a one-stop place where they could find content and resources for their small groups.”
Donaldson believes that participating in a vibrant small group is one of the best ways for a man to grow in his faith.
“In a small group, you are around guys that are truly walking the walk and talking the talk, and being true servant leaders and loving their families, serving their families, serving others,” Donaldson said. “It inspires you. When men gather with other men and they’re all supporting and encouraging one another, they will all grow together.”
Small groups, he added, have to be different from other forms of male bonding like watching a football game or going to a bar.
“You can do fun things with other guys, like watch a game, go grab a beer, hang out with one another. That’s really important. That’s fraternity, that’s brotherhood,” Donaldson said. “But we also need to grow in the faith, where we actually seek formation and have conversations about the faith. A small group allows those conversations to happen.”
Plans to grow
About 40,000 men have used the Heroic Men platform so far. Donaldson has an ambitious plan to invite 25,000 new men to utilize the content in 2025. As part of the plan, Heroic Men is planning on releasing a new video series hosted by Father Larry Richards based on his book “Be a Man.”
While a plethora of other Catholic platforms exist, the Heroic Men team believes they fill a critical gap in the realm of Catholic content. They create and curate content solely for men, a mission that they say is critical to the life of the Church and the future of the world.
“When we strengthen men, we strengthen their families,” Donaldson said. “When we strengthen the family, we strengthen the Church. When we strengthen the Church, we transform the culture.”
