MEETING THE CHALLENGE: LOCAL TEEN CHALLENGE PROGRAM OFFERS CHRISTIAN SOLUTIONS TO ADDICTION PROBLEMS

Although it is a drug treatment program, there aren't any counselors trained in drug rehabilitation or substance abuse at the Teen Challenge International Mid-America training center in Cape Girardeau.

But the Rev. Jack Smart makes no apologies for his 21-member staff. And he shouldn't.

Teen Challenge is a ministry program designed to offer help with life-controlling problems like drugs and alcohol, Smart said. Nearly 2,500 students have graduated since it began nearly 30 years ago.

As long as people are interested in ministering to those in need of God's love and care, the program is a success, he said. About 100 students are currently enrolled.

Even without any recognized credentials, the national program boasts a 75 percent success rate among its graduates, according to government studies.

"We don't apologize and aren't embarrassed," Smart said. "We don't get criticism, but there's not much recognition either. People don't think we can do the job because we don't have the trained staff. But if God is at the center of the solution, then we can make up for what is lacking otherwise."

Unlike most other drug treatment programs that say the solution is changing habits and lifestyles, Teen Challenge offers a biblical approach to drug problems. Its motto is a "proven cure for the drug epidemic."

"You need a brand-new foundation for life," Smart said. The program encourages each student to develop a personal relationship with Christ but doesn't make the commitment mandatory.

"Christ works to cause the change," he said. "We help them learn what the Bible says about sin and life after drug addiction."

Because addicts don't always have the power to change themselves, Teen Challenge relies on God to make the change. "When God comes in, he takes out the old, and you are a new creation."

Participants in the program spend four months at an induction center before arriving at the training centers. They usually spend about 10 months there learning job skills, taking Bible courses and developing good habits. In addition to the center at Cape Girardeau, there are four others in Missouri.

At the center, students are assigned tasks, either mowing lawns or helping in the berry fields during the spring and summer. Teen Challenge grows strawberries, blueberries and blackberries on its 315-acre campus. Other jobs are offered in the woodworking shop or participants may chop wood during cooler months.

Most of the berries and wood products are sold to help pay for the campus' operating costs. Donations make up much of the remaining budget.

"We try to teach the basic attitudes and habits of work," Smart said. "These men have had jobs before but never learned to work. You don't necessarily need a vocation if you can learn a skill and know how to work."

Many of the things taught at the Teen Challenge program are basic lessons most people don't even realize are necessary. "If you grew up in a sound home, you wouldn't even realize these are things that others didn't know," Smart said.

The differences between the induction and training center is somewhat like the differences between elementary and secondary education, Smart said. Both have the same goal but use different methods to teach the lessons.

Glen Sinclair helps new students with some of the basic skills like listening, following instructions and even learning how to walk while on the job without slouching or hanging their head.

Sinclair also works with the crews during berry season each spring. About 2 1/2 acres of strawberries are currently in production.

The strawberries will be sold today during the annual Strawberry Festival at the campus. It begins at 9 a.m. and ends at 2 p.m. Concerts by the New Creations choir and puppet shows for children also are planned throughout the day.

In addition to the work schedule, each student participates in counseling, group prayer and chapel services and attends church regularly. Bible classes are taught five days a week, and a GED program is offered.

The program isn't easy. Many students drop out at the induction center because making such a drastic change is hard.

"Prison is easier than this," Smart said.

About 30 percent of the students at the Cape Girardeau campus were ordered by a judge to enroll in the Teen Challenge program as an alternative to prison. If they complete the program, they won't have to serve time.

"Drug addicts live for today and don't look down the road," Smart said. Many would rather go to a 30-day program repeatedly than attend a 14-month religious program only once.

Jonathon Williams knew that he needed to change something in his life, so he called Teen Challenge for help.

Unlike many of the participants, Williams wasn't ordered to attend by a judge, nor was he considered an addict by society.

"I didn't have any problems that you would consider a social disaster," he said. But, he added, "I knew they weren't acceptable."

Williams, who works for a computer firm in Illinois, realized he was spending more time at work than with his wife and children. And he was drinking too much. "I knew I had to get back to the basics."

So he enrolled in Teen Challenge and arrived at the Cape Girardeau center about three months ago. "I know that I need to be living dependent on God from the very beginning," he said.

Which is exactly the lesson Teen Challenge hopes to teach its students.

Teen Challenge Facts

-- The campus is situated on 315 acres along County Road 618 outside Cape Girardeau.

-- The program first began accepting students in 1970.

-- On average 100 students graduate from the program each year. Since 1970, nearly 2,500 students have completed the 14-month program.

-- Teen Challenge is affiliated with the Assemblies of God churches. National headquarters are in Springfield, Mo.

-- There are 120 Teen Challenge centers in the nation. Five are in Missouri, including one in Cape Girardeau.

-- Teen Challenge has a 70 percent success rate with graduates. About 76 percent attend church regularly after completing the program. Another 72 percent completed their GED after finishing the program.