About Us

What We Do

We reach out to those who need help. The individual seeking help is received into the program, withdrawn from all addicting habits, and brought into a consistent schedule of Bible studies, class work, prayer, job schedule, and activities. There is an opportunity to acquire a G.E.D. diploma along with certain homemaking skills, etc. Our homey atmosphere, which is casual yet disciplined, allows for one to feel truly loved. This approach gives freedom for each lady to open up without fear of rejection, instead of being expected to function according to structured rule only. In addition to spiritual guidance, we care for the physical needs of the students. These needs include a drug-free environment, food, and recreation; which are key factors to the lady’s success in the program.

Rate of Success

We have been asked many times, “What is your cure rate?” (The “cure rate” refers to the percentage of those completing a rehabilitation program who remain drug-free for at least five years.) Because of the Teen Challenge emphasis on spiritual rebirth, social scientists were skeptical of the cure rate claimed by Teen Challenge. Experts in the field helped us challenge the federal government to study the effectiveness of the program. Our purpose was a sincere desire to have scientific support for what we knew God was accomplishing here.

In 1974, the National Institute on Drug Abuse approved a very large grant for the purpose of researching Teen Challenge graduates who had completed the program five years previous. Dr. Catherine Hess, M.D., M.P.H., a noted authority who had directed the initiation of the methadone program in New York State, was selected to head the independent survey conducted by the National Opinion Research Center of the University of Chicago. The study took several years to complete and the results were astounding! They showed that 86% of the Teen Challenge graduates were still drug-free for more than seven years following completion of the program. This governmental study concluded with this statement, “…Teen Challenge is most successful with youngsters who are seeking some meaningful anchor or support system in their lives and are able to find it in a religious experience…It appears reasonable to conclude that involvement with Teen Challenge associated with dramatic changes in behavior for a substantial number of heroin users.”

Teen Challenge is different from other agencies and rehabilitation programs only in the fact that Jesus is the center of everything we do. Jesus is THE factor that produces these results. For more information on specific studies conducted over the years, please click here.