Detention & Treatment Center Ministry

detention & treatment center ministry

More than Music initiates and invigorates juvenile detention center ministry and mentorship programs across the US. MtM has been working in detention centers and drugs rehab facilities for more than 10 years. In the past two years alone, More than Music spread a message of hope, love, and forgiveness to over 2000 residents living within the above facilities. Since 2003 MtM has reached thousands of kids for Christ and handed out revolutionizing materials that inspire hope and offer truths the can bring real freedom. We are looking to continue this work and in years to come GREATLY increase our impact across the U.S. More than Music believes there is real need behind the wrong. That we CAN and MUST meet.

» Link to “Live from the Inside” Video

“In the last several years, we have watched Stephanie Pauline and More than Music capture the attention of hardened young men and women inside juvenile detention centers in Colorado. Stephanie’s willingness to share her story of overcoming domestic violence, drug abuse, and an unplanned pregnancy creates an opportunity for young people to then share their own stories. Youth for Christ Juvenile Justice Ministry is grateful for ministries like More than Music who willingly meet teens in very tough places, and we appreciate that More than Music helps organizations like ours gain further access to the hearts and minds of incarcerated teenagers. Like Johnny Cash did in his time with incarcerated adults, Stephanie Pauline and More than Music seeks to engage young people in detention centers and helps open the doors for ministries like Youth for Christ to provide ongoing programming and follow-up on the opportunities for healing created through her concerts.”
Eric Kelly, National Director-Juvenile Justice Ministries Youth for Christ USA

WHO ARE THESE YOUNG PEOPLE

Many youth in the U.S. juvenile justice system have been exposed to myriad traumatic events, as victims or witnesses, and developed PTSD and other disorders, which impacted their ability to achieve normal developmental milestones in a timely manner. This exposure to trauma increased their risk for substance use and subsequent victimization, and aggression.

Of the young people who are incarcerated:

  • 80% are from fatherless homes.
  • 55% were abused or neglected as children.
  • 75% of the juvenile sex offenders have been victims of sexual abuse.
  • 95% of teenage prostitutes have been sexually abused.
  • 50% have family members who have seriously abused drugs in the past 5 years.
  • More than 50% have family members who had been incarcerated.

TOY SOLDIER 1280 PROJECT

According to Youth for Christ here are 1,280 facilities across the country that do not currently have any Christ-based mentoring program in place. More than Music has strategic plans to plant mentoring programs in EVERY facility across the country through a collaboration with national level US Youth for Christ. Our plan is to use an initial vision casting concert experience as a catalyst to recruit teams of mentors, plugging churches into the juvenile detention centers in their locale, then YFC will manage the ongoing resources and provide affiliate status to the Church. We are creating ongoing mentorship programs and ongoing support for incarcerated young people.

FIND A DETENTION CENTER IN YOUR AREA

Specifically, MtM is now mobilizing to contact churches in the locale of detention centers that do not currently have mentoring programs, one after another after another. When we find a willing church – MtM then puts on a vision casting and team recruiting concert in that church. After the powerful vision casting, recruiting concert in the church in the locale of the detention center, More than Music then does another concert, this time in the detention facility with the newfound team of mentors. Day after day, year after year these kids CAN be reached for Christ. We will implement this plan until EVERY facility across the U.S. has a thriving Christ-based mentoring program that is doing REAL WORK to impact young people and change lives for better. MtM will simply utilize a forum people can understand: an impactful, moving concert, thereby spinning the top on the GREAT WORK that will be done in these facilities by mentors who will do the day by day, year after year in the trenches work of loving – really loving these young people.

If you would like to help just click on VOLUNTEER and see where you can plug in today!


THANK YOU TO OUR VALUED PROGRAM SPONSORS

WORDS FROM YOUNG PEOPLE MOVED BY THE MINISTRY OF MtM

“I am super excited, and just wanted to let you know that I have FINALLY made it a whole year without hurting myself!!! I am thanking God for helping me through one year, and praying for help to make it through another. I thought you might be interested in hearing this. I want to thank you for encouraging me. It was very appreciated, and definitely helped me through some of the harder moments this last year. Thank you for the reminder that He will never abandon me.  It sometimes seems that no one will stay with me; I need to remember that God will.  I pray you continue to be a blessing to more people’s lives as you have in mine.”
17 year old female (former “cutter”), MN

“You have been a major support and help for my commitment.  For the last six months I have had extremely good changes in my life and now express myself without violence.  So I am really thankful to God for putting you in my path to help me.  I will continue to recite the truths you shared with me every night until they become me.”
19 Young man, Spring Creek

“As the former Director of Southern Colorado Youth For Christ it has been an honor and a priviledge to partner with More Than Music and Stephanie inside several Southern Colorado youth institutions for many years. Stephanie’s ability to weave her own story of struggles as a young person with her music and testimony of the healing power of Christ moves the hardest of the hard to consider a new path and their need for a relationship with God. We have been able to use the Toy Soldier video and message in two of our Hope & Potential concerts featuring Bebo Norman and NIchole Noredeman, which we completed in partnership with More Than Music, Inc. Both concerts were very successful in terms of finances and raising the awareness of our local need to reach out to incarcerated young people. I highly recommend that other ministries who are currently working with incarcerated young people, or are considering this area of outreach, also consider a partnership with Stephanie Pauline and More Than Music, Inc. You and the young people you serve with be blessed!”
Michael Rueffert, former Executive Director, Southern Colorado Youth for Christ

» See More