A22—Lancaster Faming, Saturday, March 17,1914
Dairy farming helps change young lives
BY ROBIN PHILLIPS
Staff Correspondent
REHRERSBURG - It’s called
“the hill,” God’s Mountain, and
includes over 300 acres of rolling
countryside. Smiles are easily
found here; cooperation, com
passion and sharing are in
abundance. Lives change. Former
outcasts are transformed into good
citizens and active Christians.
This haven is the Teen Challenge
Farm an 4 Training Center, located
outside of Rehrersburg, Berks
County.
The training center includes a
print shop, ceramics shop, auto
body shop, greenhouse, gym
nasium, chapel, classrooms, and a
dairy farm. The purpose of the
center is to rehabilitate men with
“life controlling problems,”
mainly alcohol and drug addiction.
Students come from a wide
variety of backgrounds and must
go through an induction center
where they have demonstrated
their interest in improving
themselves and in becoming a
Christian. Once at the center,
training emphasizes building
Christian character, upgrading
schooling, and learning one of the
21 vocational trades at the center
to prepare them for a new life in
society once again.
The teaching at the center
stresses the application of Biblical
principles to relationships in the
family, church, chosen vocation
and the community.
One of the best means of
teaching these principles at the
center is the dairy farm located
within the complex. One hundred
and fifteen Holstein cows are
milked twice a day by students
who volunteer to learn farming.
Approximately 500 acres are tilled
by students who learn that farmers
<een Challenge complex in Rehrersburg, Berks County,
includes dairy farm in the background, other vocational
"'Sit M m > bjwfci*/ wor k in all kinds of weather, even
M . rii Hpill when they are sick. Replacement
'****. .i/Ja ' PSSJ stock ar «t bulls are raised by the
-v H " students, in addition to some
The herd currently averages
15,762 pounds milk, 3.7% butterfat
with 586 pounds butterfat. The
herdsman predicts production will
surpass 16,000 pounds in a month
or two. The farm is able to support
itself, the staff and still make
contributions to the main complex
on‘‘the hill.”
“It costs us to have students
here," states Nelson Martin, farm
Three students and a staff member make up a milking crew **“
on Teen Challenge Farm * A *
manager. “But, we’re not that
interested in the money, but in
changing lives."
"It’s rewarding working with the
students and seeing the changes,"
Martin states Martin has been
with Teen Challenge for five years.
A previous dairy farmer, he sold
his operation to work at Teen
Challenge.
“This is considered a ministry,"
says Lewis Sager, herdsman. “We
deal with all kinds of mixed up
backgrounds We aren't working
for ourselves, we’re working for
the Lord," he states
Teen Challenge is a national
network of rehabilitation centers
for men and women It receives no
< *•>.
educational structures and staff housing in the foreground
government funding and relies on
support from churches of all
demonmations, groups, and any
individual who would like to help
support its concepts. There are no
tuition fees for students and
anyone is welcomed.
The Rehrersburg center can
accomodate 240 students. The
average age of the students is 24.
There is no upper age limit but the
minimum age is 16 years. Martin
explains that the older students
have seen more alcohol related
Kevin, a Student, and Nelson Martin, farm manager, hold a
set of triplet lambs recently born on farm.
problems while the problems of the
younger generations are more
drug related. At the center, “there
is absolutely no smoking or
drinking permitted ever,” Martin
states.
Students are housed, four to a
room. “They have to learn to deal
with each other’s personalities,”
Martin explains. In the first four
months of the ten-month program,
a student gets to switch from one
vocation to another. At the end of
(Turn to PageA29)