Eastern Appalachian teen challenge Past students experience Roanoke Virginia

January 5, 2010 was the start of my journey, I was 14 years old. I believe this place is a cult, nobody should be forced into believing that there is a god. Everyday we had to do 3 to 4 hours of bible work. Also school work lasted about 2 hrs that's I would think school would come before bible study's but not to them. If you didn't worship god make god your idol then you wouldn't get praised, like one of my fellow frienda said you would be ridiculed made fun of and treated like you had leperosiy. I grew up in church, but I chose not to believe or should I say follow it (before I came into the program)I was very disrespectful, I had my issues.

Yes Eatc help my issues but the way they did it was awful scared me, I have never in my life been as scared and miserable in my life as I was there. Harley cox was rude, intemidating, and the most belittling man I have ever met! My parents arent the welthiest people but they did what they could to get me some help. Harley made them pay over 2000 a month, although my parents could never even get that close to paying it every month they tried the best they could. Harley made them buy groceries and if they didn't bring any that week they weren't allowed to visit with me! The discipline was basically child labor I remember having to scrub rocks.... im being serious! Some of the other girls that were in the program longer than I was had told me they used to dig graves and stumps!

We had to take notes in church and one time my notes were shorter than the last weeks, and I got in trouble for that  my disapline for that week was to listen to sermons and to write 3 pages of notes. It was rediculous!!!  We had to do chores for an hour a day everyday and when were done they would white glove our area and if  it wasn't done right we'd have to do it again. Because there was 12 girls living in the program we only had to take 5 minunte showers and only once a week we were allowed to shave! If we didn't call the directions names with a miss before it we were written up and automatically on a word fast. Word fast means you could not speak for 24 hours and if you said any word in those hrs your time would be longer. i still talk to most of the girls they were the only ones to keep me saine. i had one great friend that I really got along with and they saw me get close to her and put me on a relationship strIke witch means you could not talk to them look at them or be in the same room as them!

I was hurt because my only friend was ripped away from me just like that. I had other friends but we didn't get along like me and her! My grandfather pasted away while I was in the program although I was alllowed to go to the funeral ( I was very lucky because Harley cox didn't let 2 other girls go to there grandmothers) I was heart broken, I. Was crying on the couch and Harley cox told me to suck it up and move on. Is that really the right thing to say to a 14 year old girl who's grandfather just passed?! i was lucky because I was local my family livied in town. They went to the church that we as teen challenge went to, if I was lucky I would see my parents twice a week. I felt horrible about that now that I look back on that because some girls didn't even get to visit there parents the whole time they were in the program. When I left the program I was considered a past student. Harley would tell the girls not to talk to me when I would see them at church, those were my friends! I was very hurt by that! Everything ive been through I believe has made me stronger but I still have nightmares of that place. When I see them at church I get panicie. Im afraid they might take me and put me back in the program . I've herd stories that the Coxes would take the money specifically for teen challenge and go on vacations with it use that money for their family and leave the rest for us. If you ask me they are like con artist making us go to door to door asking for money! I'm happy that they helped me but I'm not satisfied on how they do thing. I would not recomend them at all!  Please don't send your children here!!!!!