Mark Houck is the Co-Founder/President of The King’s Men. The King’s Men is a non-profit 501 (c)(3) organization seeking to unite and build up men as true leaders, protectors, and providers with the goal of eliminating pornography. An aspiring professional football player turned chastity educator!
IMPORTANT UPDATE: (Excerpt From Lifesite News Article Friday, September 23rd, 2022) Mark Houck was arrested, in front of his wife and seven children, during a raid by the FBI. As reported by Life Site News, "the arrest stemmed from an alleged altercation between Houck and an abortion facility employee outside a downtown Philadelphia Planned Parenthood last year, where Houck was praying with his 12-year-old son. Prosecutors allege Mark, the founder and president of The King’s Men, which promotes healing for victims of pornography addiction and promotes Christian virtues among men, violated the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act when he allegedly pushed an abortion clinic employee twice in one day in October 2021. The FACE Act makes it a felony to use force to intimidate, injure, or obstruct pro-life or pro-abortion protestors or abortion facility workers, or to obstruct or destroy abortion facilities or pro-life pregnancy centers." Houck pleaded not guilty to two counts September 27 in a Philadelphia federal court, Fox News reported. Mark’s wife, Ryan-Marie, told LifeSiteNews on Friday the abortion facility worker had been harassing their 12-year-old son by using vulgar language and getting into the boy’s “personal space,” and that Mark had shoved him away to protect his son. “He didn’t have any injuries or anything, but he tried to sue Mark,” Ryan-Marie said, adding that the case was thrown out of court in the summer. On Tuesday, Houck’s attorney, Thomas More Society vice president and senior counsel Peter Breen, backed up Ryan-Marie’s account of the October incident."
If you told Mark Houck at the close of his college football days (Catholic University 1992-1996) that he would be traveling around the country speaking to teens, parents and young adults about the virtue of chastity instead of playing football he would have laughed. “I was determined to make my dream of becoming a professional football player a reality.” It was not out of the realm of possibility for Mark to catch on with a professional football organization post college as he drew much attention from the New England Patriots during his senior year. But as Mark says “God had other plans. I see now that He was preparing me for a mighty work and a career in football was not it.”
Since 2004, Mark has been working full-time in the pro-life movement and lecturing teens on their sexuality throughout the Unites States and Canada. Mentored by international chastity educator, author and pro-life pioneer Molly Kelly, Mark has developed into one of the finest speakers on the issues of chastity and pro-life in the country. Mark believes that the young people of today are ready and up to the challenge of living a chaste lifestyle. “I tell teens its real simple. If you want to be happy, healthy and holy then chastity is for you.”
Working in the pro-life and chastity movement has taught Mark many things. One of the lessons that he learned was that there is a tremendous need for men to get more involved. “We as men have failed in our roles of being leaders, protectors and providers when it comes to the issue of abortion and sexuality. In my own journey, I recognized that I needed to do more as a man to protect women and children and the common good.”
Inspired with a desire to summon men to more properly live out their vocations, Mark co-founded in August 2006 an exciting new lay apostolate called The King’s Men. Through the ministry of The King’s Men, Mark works full-time to unite and build up men as true leaders, protectors and providers through education, formation, action and healing. “Men live out their vocation most properly when they are engaged in a battle. The King’s Men apostolate is challenging men to take up their post in fighting two of the biggest battles today: pornography and abortion.”
The work of The King’s Men and Mark has received national attention from The National Catholic Register & EWTN. In addition to his work as a chastity educator, pro-life activist and President of The King’s Men, Mark is a Catholic radio host and speaks on a variety of issues related to the development of masculine spirituality. His speaking topics have included: building effective men’s groups, pornography, homosexuality, chivalry, modesty, theology of the body and leadership development. Mark has co-authored with Molly Kelly four brochures for teens & parents on the issue of teen sexuality, parenting, pornography and homosexuality. Mark holds a Master's Degree in Education from Holy Family University.
