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Turlock recovery program launches new teen and parent programs
Prodigal
Prodigal Sons & Daughters has been offering programs for at-risk youth for over 25 years. Prodigal is now offering a teen parenting program also (Photo contributed).

The Turlock nonprofit, faith-based addiction recovery ministry Prodigal Sons and Daughters has two new initiatives aimed at providing support to families with teenagers.

The first initiative is a parent supporting teens group. This is a group specifically geared towards helping parents with teens deal with the struggles of parenting. The goal is to help them establish loving limits with their children through spiritual principles, according to Director of Youth Care Kristyn Loera.

“This is an opportunity for parents to come and share the difficulties of parenting or what has been a struggle in their household,” said Loera. “After learning where parents commonly struggle, we will discuss as a group.”

The other program is a youth Bible study that would be attended by teens while their parents are attending the parents supporting teens group. Loera will be facilitating the Bible study.

“Through Bible study, our goal is to help teens learn how to apply the Bible to their everyday lives so that they can find truth in today's society,” she said.

Prodigal Sons and Daughters was founded in 1998, in response to a teen in need of addiction counseling. Ken and Jane Muers took in the teen and countless others followed.  Quickly, they realized that the need for help was apparent in the Central Valley.

Prodigal moved into their current location in 2006. The services they provide are free thanks to donations from the local community.

The organization provides education, intervention and prevention services through weekly group meetings as well as individual counseling for adults.

Since 2014, Prodigal has helped promote youth drug prevention and education through its Tactical intervention Program — a system utilized by Turlock Unified School District as an alternative to suspension for junior high and high school students who are found with drugs on campus.