Today we’d like to introduce you to Krystal Currie.
Hi Krystal, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I’ve always been someone who cares deeply about people, their stories, their potential, and the environments that shape them. That passion led me into the world of social services early on. I studied social work and began working with youth and families who were navigating crisis, instability, and systems that often failed them.
Over the years, I combined that social work foundation with extensive ministry leadership, serving in roles that centered mentorship, community care, and emotional support. Those experiences taught me how trauma, faith, environment, and opportunity intersect, and how deeply young people need consistent, compassionate adults in their corner.
Wanting to deepen my impact and broaden my tools, I pursued my Master of Divinity, where my work focused heavily on pastoral care, ethics, and community leadership. During that time, I began serving inside juvenile detention centers, and that changed everything for me.
In those facilities, I saw youth who reminded me of my own family and community, brilliant, creative, resilient young people whose challenges were often rooted in circumstances beyond their control. I saw gaps: the gap between punishment and healing, between expectation and support, between who these youth were labeled to be and who they actually were.
That experience crystallized something in me.
I no longer wanted to just support youth within broken systems; I wanted to build something that could transform outcomes for them.
That’s how Reviving Leaders Collective was born.
RLC began as a vision to revive hope, restore purpose, and raise leaders among justice-involved youth. What started as a burden in my heart became a structured organization with mentorship, reentry support, leadership development cohorts, restorative peer groups, and long-term community for youth ages 13–18.
I built a board, designed our programs, secured our 501(c)(3), and stepped fully into the work I knew I was called to do. Today, RLC is growing into a movement, one that not only supports youth in crisis but positions them as leaders and change-makers in their own lives.
My story is one where social work, ministry, education, and lived experience intersect, and RLC is the expression of all those worlds coming together to serve the next generation.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
No, it hasn’t been a smooth road. And to be completely honest, it still isn’t. There are days when the weight of this work feels overwhelming, days when I am frustrated, exhausted, and begging God to let me put this down. There are moments when I question why He placed this burden on my heart in the first place, or why I feel so responsible for being a part of the solution.
Most people talk about having a mustard seed of faith, but I am quite literally holding onto mine for dear life. Some days it feels like the only thing keeping me from giving up altogether. Launching a nonprofit, especially one rooted in healing and justice, exposes you to a level of spiritual, emotional, and systemic resistance that no book or degree fully prepares you for.
There have been administrative challenges, financial barriers, discouraging delays, and moments where I felt completely alone in the vision. Balancing ministry, graduate school, social work, and the emotional toll of walking with justice-involved youth has stretched me in ways I didn’t expect.
And yet, at the beginning and end of every single day, there is still something in me pushing forward past the disappointments. A quiet strength. A persistent nudge. A reminder of the young people depending on this work. That pull is what keeps me going when everything in me wants to quit.
So no, the journey hasn’t been smooth. But it has been refining, humbling, purpose-shaping, and deeply spiritual. The struggle has taught me resilience, dependence on God, and the truth that even mustard-seed faith is enough to move mountains when the calling is real.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Reviving Leaders Collective, Inc. ?
Reviving Leaders Collective is a youth development and reentry organization created specifically for justice-involved youth. We focus on restoring what the system often strips away, identity, confidence, stability, and hope. Our programs walk with youth from crisis to leadership, offering support at every stage of their journey.
We offer five core pillars of support:
Justice Bridge – crisis stabilization, bond support, and immediate needs assessment
Rise & Reclaim – reentry support for youth returning home
Builder’s Table – a leadership development cohort
Circle 7 – monthly restorative peer groups
Legacy & Liberation – long-term mentorship and alumni support
What makes us different is that we don’t view these young people as problems to be managed, we see them as leaders who need guidance, structure, and someone believing in them long before they believe in themselves. Our work is trauma-informed, spiritually grounded, and culturally attuned.
We specialize in standing in the gaps: the moment a young person comes home from detention, the moment a probation officer needs a safe alternative to incarceration, the moment a family is falling apart, the moment a youth is trying to navigate life without resources or direction.
What we are known for is meeting youth where they are, with compassion, consistency, and high expectations. We honor their humanity while also challenging them to rise into their potential. There is no judgment, no shame-based approach, just structure, love, accountability, and leadership development wrapped into one ecosystem of support.
Brand-wise, I am most proud that RLC has become a symbol of hope. Our name carries weight because it is rooted in revival, reviving hope, reviving purpose, reviving leadership in young people who have been counted out or underestimated. Our brand represents dignity, resilience, second chances, and generational transformation.
What I want readers to know is that RLC is more than a nonprofit. It’s a movement. It’s a commitment to changing the narrative for youth who rarely see themselves reflected positively in the systems they encounter. Every program, every mentor, every session is designed to build not just better outcomes, but better lives, stronger families, and future leaders.
Our services aren’t just offerings, they’re lifelines. And every young person who walks through our doors is treated not as a statistic, but as a story still being written.
What were you like growing up?
Growing up, I was extremely shy, the kind of child who smiled constantly, sometimes out of joy, but often out of nerves. I kept to myself, always observing, always feeling things deeply, but rarely saying them out loud. My mom was very protective, so I wasn’t outside much or running the streets like other kids. I spent most of my time with family, especially my grandmother, or with my dad on weekends. Those were the places where I felt safest.
But even in those safe spaces, I carried a quiet longing. I always wanted “in”, to be included, to feel normal, to take up space without feeling like I had to earn it. I spent so many years trying to be someone other than myself because I truly didn’t believe me was enough. I thought blending in was safer than being seen, and that shrinking myself was easier than risking rejection.
It’s interesting looking back now, because I barely remember pieces of my childhood personality beyond that feeling, the constant tug-of-war between wanting connection and fearing exposure. I lived behind a soft smile and a quiet spirit, hoping no one would notice how unsure I felt.
But adulthood changed me. Healing changed me. Purpose changed me. I’ve grown into a version of myself who is happier, fuller, and far more accepting of the woman I’m becoming. I still have days when self-acceptance feels like work, but there’s something beautiful about how life comes full circle. The same people I once tried so hard to fit in with now see me, the real me, and it reminds me that authenticity was always the right path.
Today, I constantly tell myself:
Be you. The world needs who you are, not the version you tried to become to feel worthy.
And the more I embrace that truth, the more freedom, purpose, and alignment I find.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://revivingleaderscollective.org
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/revivingleaderscollective/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61578805063428
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/108757166/admin/dashboard/
Image Credits
Just for clarity, the “FearLessThruChrist” photos and brand shown are a part of “Reviving Leaders Collective’s” official merchandise line. One hundred percent of the proceeds go directly toward supporting RLC’s mission and programs for justice-impacted youth.
Some of the images were taken by a close friend, and others were captured by my photographer friend, whose work can be found on Instagram at @SpecialMomentsbyMiata.
