Executive director Greg Keylon works with Teen Challenge students during class time.
Teen Challenge addresses security issues
Commissioner Tommy Powers announced at the regular meeting June 9 that county commissioners met with Teen Challenge leaders June 1 to discuss security measures at the Prayer Mountain facility. There are 19 boys housed there. Six boys have run away from the facility since it opened over a year ago. Commissioners and residents in the area have complained about security issues at the facility.
"They're working really hard to try to keep those kids in line. They are making some changes down there," Powers said. "They know they have problems – mostly with boys who've been there less than 45 days – and will now make them wear orange jumpsuits. They'll add more outside lighting and put security monitors on doors upstairs where the boys stay. They are trying."
Executive director and pastor Greg Keylon at Teen Challenge Prayer Mountain Boys Academy said there are many incorrect perceptions about the facility in the county. He said Teen Challenge is a Christian-based ministry that operates from reasonable tuition costs and donations from churches. He said no violent or sexual offenders are allowed in the Pike County program and most boys are from Georgia. He said boys 13 to 17 years old are enrolled into the program by their parents or court ordered to help with drug addictions.
"These kids aren't hardened criminals," Keylon said. "They've made mistakes like all of us and need help getting back on the right track. We won't take anybody who has any type of violent background."
Keylon said he was glad commissioners took time to come see the facility and share their concerns. He added there are six full time employees who spend the day with the boys and three who live at the facility in the evenings for a total of nine life coaches. Motion detectors have been installed at the dormitory doors so if the boys attempt to leave their rooms at night it will set off the alarm system.
"We're not an easy program. We make it challenging. Many of our students here have gone through other 28-day programs and it didn't work for them. They'd like to us to have a fence around the property but we're not a prison," he said. "We're not hiding from the community. They can come up and have lunch with us anytime. We want to help in the community and are open to service project ideas."
For more, read the Wednesday, June 16 print/eEdition of The Pike County Journal-Reporter.
Executive director and pastor Greg Keylon at Teen Challenge Prayer Mountain Boys Academy said there are many incorrect perceptions about the facility in the county. He said Teen Challenge is a Christian-based ministry that operates from reasonable tuition costs and donations from churches. He said no violent or sexual offenders are allowed in the Pike County program and most boys are from Georgia. He said boys 13 to 17 years old are enrolled into the program by their parents or court ordered to help with drug addictions.
"These kids aren't hardened criminals," Keylon said. "They've made mistakes like all of us and need help getting back on the right track. We won't take anybody who has any type of violent background."
Keylon said he was glad commissioners took time to come see the facility and share their concerns. He added there are six full time employees who spend the day with the boys and three who live at the facility in the evenings for a total of nine life coaches. Motion detectors have been installed at the dormitory doors so if the boys attempt to leave their rooms at night it will set off the alarm system.
"We're not an easy program. We make it challenging. Many of our students here have gone through other 28-day programs and it didn't work for them. They'd like to us to have a fence around the property but we're not a prison," he said. "We're not hiding from the community. They can come up and have lunch with us anytime. We want to help in the community and are open to service project ideas."
For more, read the Wednesday, June 16 print/eEdition of The Pike County Journal-Reporter.
That sounds like a pretty hardened criminal to me so what Mr. Keylon is saying is not necessarily true.
Had he told me that, he would have spent the rest of the evening waiting for the cops, tied to a chair.
I do not understand why commissioners cannot blog? They could at least give their ridiculous reasons for backing Keylon and the Griffin Kickback League. Maybe when they grow to fit big boy pants they can talk. Election time will bring them out. They all get saved about six months before their re-election time and realize they work for Pike County, not Florida TC and FAG.
it's time to stop pussy-footing around with the clowns from teen challenge
conflicts with
"They know they have problems – mostly with boys who've been there less than 45 days – and will now make them wear orange jumpsuits."
Orange jail issue jumpsuits? How exactly is this helping?
MAKE TEEN CHALLENGE HAVE TO SPEND MONEY
AND THEY WILL GO AWAY.
You were elected to represent the best interest of Pike County not Spalding County.
The time has come to require the owner's of Prayer Mountain to either fence the property with a secure fence (similar to the ladies prison on county farm road) or shutdown the facility.
You are supposed to be representing Pike County and yet you've allowed this drug addict day care center to open and endanger people whom you are supposed to represent. This is a dereliction of duty. Either do what you were elected to do or RESIGN NOW!!! and let someone else do the job correctly.
IN GOD WE TRUST
The address is:
Teen Challenge
736 US Hwy 19
Meansville, Ga. 30256
Sheila Tolley
Mostly, we should be reassured that if these boys were hardened criminals and/or murderers they would most definitely be residing in a detention center. Secondly, these boys are human. As quoted, when they do attempt to flee it is merely to return to THEIR hometown because they miss their loved ones.
If we are to live in fear it should be directed more toward a society that has not been taught a better way of life... through a facility that is willing to teach them.
God bless these people. Hang in there.
One of these dark nights one of those boys is going to try to steal from the wrong family or break into the wrong home. They may be do it because they are just trying to get home, but they will end up home with Jesus if they aren't kept confined to TC property.
TC doesn't care about that, apparently, or there would have already been alarms in place, a fence around the the property, and orange jumpsuits. Why did they wait until everyone is up in arms over all the escaped boys to take what little action they've taken??
TOO LITTLE, MAYBE TOO LATE.
Or because they don't want to be forced to do what the facility expects of them and rebel to go back to what they were doing that got them there in the first place.
2 of them stole property from a nearby house
1 of them approached a house at 2AM and the owner just happened to be standing on the porch. he told the lady of the house that he had shot someone in the past
If you have people willing to steal and/or kill to leave. You are going to have a tragedy.
Can't wait to see you in church again.
http://lagrangenews.com/view/full_story/5518140/article-group-homes-come-under-scrutiny
i hope the victims family sues the pants off the BOC and each commissioner who was involved individually when it does happen. and then the citizens in the valley should start a class action suit as well.
you can bet if it's any of my kin they will be sued.