WILDERNESS YOUTH CHALLENGE PROGRAM (WYCP)
The Wilderness Youth Challenge Program was established in 2006 as a relapse prevention initiative targeting youth deemed at risk. This volunteer driven program is no fee for service accepting youth aged 12-16 on referral by professional support persons. We offer four unique life experiences designed to teach youth better decision-making skills, which is the key to avoiding a relapse into negative decisions made in the past. Ten days in a wilderness setting culminating in youth completing a four-day solo camping exercise followed by one year in the community exercising relapse prevention skills learned in the wilderness. Achieving that goal we then offer an opportunity to return as a volunteer for a ten-day challenge and earn a ten-day international trip to Costa Rica as a student volunteer contributing to the largest ECO farm in the province of Guatemala. These four spans of time over a two-year period have demonstrated remarkable success with numerous testimonials supporting relapse prevention.