Teen Challenge
of the Rocky Mountains
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Rev. Wilkerson and Gang Leader, |
Rev. Wilkerson Today |
In 1958, a young pastor named David Wilkerson went to New York City to help young people caught up in the violence of the inner-city gangs. As he established a rapport with the gang members, he discovered a complex web of other destructive activities, ranging from sexual promiscuity and prostitution to hard-core drug addiction, all made worse by the violent gang lifestyle. Mr. Wilkerson, seeing the desperate need to offer a completely different kind of life, purchased a large residence in Brooklyn, NY, where he took in and cared for these young people. Thus, Teen Challenge as we know it today was born. Today, Rev. Wilkerson ministers at Times Square Church in New York City.
The success of the Teen Challenge approach grew into not only helping teenagers, but also adult men and women trapped by addictions. Teen Challenge is now the oldest, largest and most successful program of its kind for people with drug and alcohol addictions. There are currently 168 Teen Challenge centers in the U.S., with another 241 centers around the world, including the most recent in Afghanistan. Today, Teen Challenge ministers not only to teenagers, but to people of all ages.
Teen Challenge of the Rocky Mountains (serving Colorado and Utah) was first established in 1970. Currently, a Teen Challenge adult mens center, known as "180 Ministries", (18 years and up) is located in south Denver, and the New Hope House serving adolescent girls is located in Tooele, Utah. House of Promise is our newest center housing women with their children.