Meeting a challenge

On Thursday, Teen Challenge International of Mid-America will kick off what it hopes is the final push to raise $2.35 million to upgrade and expand the facilities at its campus north of Cape Girardeau. The funding will be used for a new academic building, a dormitory wing and an activity center. The planned improvements will permit Teen Challenge to increase the number of students it serves to 200 from 138.

Just $425,000 short of its goal, Teen Challenge faces an April 15 deadline for completing its fund drive to obtain a $233,940 donation from the J.E. and L.E. Mabee Foundation of Tulsa, Okla.

Many area residents know about Teen Challenge through its work crews who do lawn work, the organizations strawberry festival and sales each spring and its thrift store in Cape Girardeau. Teen Challenges 14-month program for rehabilitating men addicted to drugs and alcohol based on Christian teachings and Bible scholarship, has a 70 percent success rate, according to one study.

The Community Gifts Kick-Off Thursday deserves support. Anyone interested in making a donation to this 36-year-old program with an outstanding success rate can call executive director Jack Smart at 335-6508.