Adult & Teen Challenge Report

Camp Champion 2026

A Week of Divine Breakthrough

This month, our residents and staff traveled to New York for Camp Champion, and it is difficult to put into words the weight of what we experienced. We entered the week praying for breakthrough, but what we witnessed was a powerful, tangible outpouring of God’s presence that far exceeded our expectations.

The Power of Surrender

The atmosphere was marked by a profound sense of surrender. From the first worship session to the final prayer, barriers of addiction and hopelessness were replaced by a peace that only the Holy Spirit can provide.

We watched as men and women who arrived carrying heavy burdens found the strength to lay them down, surrendering their past, and stepping into a renewed identity in Christ.

These moments of deep healing captured in the photos are a testament to the fact that God is moving mightily within our centers.

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Matthew's Testimony

I’m 49 years old and I was born in West Point on the Army base. I was raised to fear God and I always believed in God and that he was with me and protecting me. At the age of 13 my family was broken up which left a void in my life that I tried to fill for years with drugs, money and women, but this left me even emptier. For the past 22 years of my life I have been in and out of rehab and prison due to my addictions. I have had near death experiences and I've been shot, stabbed and had many other dangerous experiences because of the choices that I made.

After a long stint in prison I entered the doors of Adult & Teen Challenge in Vermont and had the longest time of sobriety that I've ever had and where I was introduced to Jesus Christ. I was not ready at that point to surrender everything, still pulled by my evil desires. These desires caused me to make poor choices and I found myself right back in the grips of addiction. I gave up all of my freedom and was in complete bondage to the drug lifestyle. I knew that I needed to return to Adult & Teen Challenge to experience freedom.

I made the choice to return and completely surrendered to the Lord. Today my relationship with God is stronger than ever. I am changing and being used by God. He has restored my relationship with my family and we are closer than we have ever been. I am looking forward to my future and what God has planned for my life and I’m not looking back. Currently, I'm employed here at ATC Connecticut and I have the privilege of working very closely with the residents. I am grateful for everything that God has done in my life and that he has now given me the opportunity to pour into other men’s lives. The Scripture that I stand on is 1 Timothy 1:5 “The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.”