June 23, 2017

AF Community

America’s Future to Host Reaganpalooza and Buckley Awards

By: Christopher Malagisi

After eight-plus amazing years, YCC is formally closing shop at the end of June 2017. But don’t worry, we’re also proud to announce that America’s Future Foundation will become the caregivers of both The Buckley Awards and Reaganpalooza, and will keep those great traditions alive!

The Young Conservatives Coalition set out to connect and foster a new generation of young professional conservatives in our nation’s capital – to help grow, educate, and cultivate a thriving young professional conservative movement. We believe that because of our fellowships, job fairs, networking, educational and young professional development events – we’ve accomplished this mission to the best of our ability, and a whole new generation of conservatives have taken on the mantle to continue our great movement.

We’re also incredibly proud that both The Buckley Awards and Reaganpalooza have become tentpoles of the conservative movement and are eagerly awaited occasions each year.

Reaganpalooza humbly started 13 years ago with just forty people in attendance at the organizer’s apartment in 2005, and would later be facilitated by the YCC from 2009-2017. Reaganpalooza was created to bring together like-minded conservative friends and allies to celebrate the conservative movement and the monumental presidency and legacy of Ronald Reagan during the annual CPAC gathering in DC. Since its modest beginnings, its grown to be the largest annual young professional conservative event in the country.

The Buckley Awards, originally founded 7 years ago and organized by YCC from 2010-2016, began as a way to recognize outstanding young professional conservatives for their above-and-beyond service to the conservative movement. The award is in honor of William F. Buckley, Jr., whom before the age of 30 became the leader of the early conservative movement championing conservative fusion – a philosophy that brought together various strands of conservatism to work together to achieve political success and conserve America’s founding principles. The award ceremony is still one of the only ones in our movement that focuses on great achievements of young professional conservatives.

We’re confident these great legacies will be in the good and capable hands of America’s Future Foundation, which has grown over the years to become the country’s premier network of liberty-minded young professional leaders.

We also want to say a special thank you to our loyal sponsors over the years who’ve made all our programs possible. Thank you for all you do for the conservative movement and we are forever grateful for your support and encouragement over the years.

While we’re proud of our contributions to the movement, I think we find the most satisfaction when we hear stories about how people were connected, got a job, or met a new friend or their significant other at one of our events, or just got excited that we still celebrate our great conservative movement and America – that “shining city upon a hill” that still is the most powerful beacon of hope and liberty in the world.

Words cannot encapsulate how we feel, but know that we are incredibly grateful and appreciative of your participation over the years. The friendships made and built throughout the years are ones that I personally cherish, and I look forward to transitioning from “young” conservatives to “adult” conservatives and friends.