"Jupiter Teen Challenge was our last resort and it should have been our first. It's the best kept secret around!"

Kevin* had just about given up on finding a program for his teenage daughter, Caitlyn*. Everything from the most expensive private schools to exclusive counseling programs had failed to meet her needs and help her through the toughest teenage years. When he asked her what was wrong with all the programs they'd tried, she simply replied, "God was missing."

Now, 24 months later, Caitlyn is just one of the many success stories coming out of this program.

Perhaps the most powerful testimony is not from the girls themselves, but from the friends and family members that have witnessed their transformation firsthand.

Kevin admits that he didn't "see the light" of Jesus until after his daughter entered Teen Challenge. Their collective experience has radically changed his life and that of his family.

"We're carriers now - infecting everyone with the positive message of Teen Challenge," he says.

Anger, rebellion, defiance, low self-esteem. These are just a few of the feelings that are common amongst the young women seeking help through Jupiter Teen Challenge.

"These girls walk in with no purpose, no place in life. They feel like they will never amount to anything," according to Gregory DelValle, who along with his wife, Essie, are executive directors of one of the most unique facilities for troubled teens in South Florida.

Teen Challenge began 50 years ago in New York and has since grown to over 400 centers in 92 countries around the world. They strive to introduce every student to Jesus in an early intervention program and alternative Christian boarding school environment for troubled girls. Each student receives an individualized program that emphasizes advanced discipleship, compassionate outreach and academic excellence, all while being nurtured in an environment of love, accountability, positive role-modeling and shared Christian values.

"We introduce them to a positive peer-culture where they are accountable to one another and face the consequences of that accountability. Most of these girls have never been in a situation where they have to judge and be juried by their peers. Not only do they get to be part of a group here, they learn to put themselves in someone else's shoes. These kids infect one another with a sense of empowerment," explains Gregory. "We have the answer to what these kids need - and it's Jesus."

Greg and Essie know firsthand the transformational power of the program.

"I was saved at the age of 12 at a Teen Challenge rally. It was then that I realized my past did not have to dictate my future. Someone took a chance on me, and I want these girls to know people still believe in them," Essie says.

And they do; it's been shown that a student's emotional intelligence increases four times from the time they arrive to the time they exit the program.

Some girls come in with more severe problems than others.

Hillary had been under a doctor's care since the age of 14, had attempted suicide three times and had tried 20 different types of medication before entering Teen Challenge. Her father, the vice-president of his synagogue, admitted this was their "last hope." Not only did Hillary complete the program, she now radiates joy where she used to be afraid to even open her mouth.

Her mother has since converted to Christianity, and both her parents are thankful for the variety of family events as well as the marriage and parenting classes the center offered while their daughter was there.

"There's truly nothing like it; we're forever grateful," say Hillary's parents.

With endorsements from the likes of Billy Graham and two U.S. Presidents, perhaps Charles Colson summed it up best when he said, "The Teen Challenge Program succeeds when all of the government programs fail."

Studies have shown that Teen Challenge has the highest success rate in the nation amongst similar programs when it comes to helping teens become contributing members of society.

The 11 staff members provide more than a 2-1 ratio for students and aspire to excellence in all they do. These girls compete against some of the largest schools and churches in the state in everything from the arts to sports. They won the 2007 Girls Rugby Championships for the state of Florida, took sixth place in the state Bible Quiz competition and will send all 10 girls to the National Fine Arts competition in North Carolina later this year. Every other year a missions team travels to Guatemala, and they continually reach out within their community, regularly working on service projects with everyone from the Tequesta Police and Fire Department to the Lighthouse Center of the Arts.

Gregory communicates a realistic faith to the girls.

"It's easy to serve God in the confines of four walls, but can you serve God when you're competing and getting pushed on a field? We don't keep them in a bubble - that sets them up to fall on their face."

The staff believes in getting the girls out in society while they can still be counseled within real life situations while also building a family environment and encouraging their parents to see their daughters in a different light.

Currently, the program has its sights set on bigger dreams. They hope to continue facilitating life-transformation one person at a time by creating graduate student housing, vocational training and additional facilities on site for when students complete the 15-month program. Students don't receive their certificate until successful follow up occurs six months after leaving the center.

Though the program has the capacity to house 22 girls, 12 have graduated since January, leaving the facility in a difficult predicament when it comes to funding. With 85 percent of their budget coming directly from tuition and a number of girls attending on scholarship, Teen Challenge daily trusts in God's provision and dreams of a time when an endowment might come into a place so that tuition funds would not play such a large part in the operating budget.

Throughout it all, Gregory and Essie will continue dedicating their lives to redefining the character of each girl - one life at a time.

*Last names have been omitted to protect the identity of minors in this story.