Teens For Christ

What Teens For Christ does

Teens For Christ Connection (TFC) is a rural nonprofit youth ministry organization founded in 1977 and headquartered in Phillipsburg, Kansas, with a primary office in Oberlin, Kansas. It operates across Northwest Kansas and Southwest Nebraska, serving teenagers in grades 5-12 and partnering with local churches that lack the resources to run standalone youth programs. Its formal entity name is Teens For Christ Connection, doing business as TFC Connection; it is privately held as a nonprofit organization with no parent company, public ticker, or institutional investor ownership.

TFC delivers a portfolio of human-led programs rather than a technology platform: (1) ten community youth groups ("Connection Groups") meeting weekly at partner churches across roughly a dozen rural towns; (2) a two-week summer camp at Camp Joy in Republican City, Nebraska (Week 1 July 20-24, Week 2 July 27-31), priced at $185-$200 per attendee with early-bird and scholarship tiers; (3) annual mission trips to Roca Blanca (Oaxaca, Mexico), Rehoboth Christian Schools (New Mexico), Miriam's Hope (Kansas), and Cary Christian Center (Mississippi); (4) disciplemaking coaching delivered by certified life coaches on staff; (5) an Associate Groups affiliation program for affiliated youth ministries; and (6) an Alumni Ministry. Programs are organized around a four-tier disciplemaking framework (Lost and Seeking, Come and Grow, Come and Follow, Come and Go) modeled on Jesus' ministry strategy. There is no proprietary technology, mobile app, API, or AI/ML capability; distribution relies on church partnerships, the tfcconnection.org website, Mailchimp email newsletters, and social media managed in-house.

TFC's revenue model is donation-anchored with auxiliary camp fees. Monetary donations come from individuals, churches, and supporters funding operations and scholarships; in-kind food donations (hamburger, sausage, eggs, bacon, cookies) supply camp meals. Camp registration fees, with multi-tier early-bird pricing and available scholarships for low-income families, are the only direct service revenue. The organization employs approximately 48 people per firmographic data (though roughly 10-12 are named on the website, suggesting substantial part-time, intern, and volunteer composition), with over 200 years of combined ministry experience among staff. Leadership rests with Executive Director Brian Fischer (since 2010), supported by long-tenured staff including Lavonne Ponstein (since 1983) and Janice Lundquist (since 1981).

Name

Teens For Christ

Legal name

Teens For Christ Connection

Website

https://tfcconnection.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1977

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Teens For Christ Connection is a rural Kansas-based nonprofit youth ministry, founded in 1977, that operates 10 community youth groups across Northwest Kansas and Southwest Nebraska, plus a summer camp at Camp Joy in Nebraska, mission trips, and disciplemaking coaching for rural teenagers and partnering churches.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Religious Youth Ministry Services

NAICS

Child and Youth Services (62411), Religious Organizations (8131), Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Youth Mentoring & Positive Youth Development Nonprofits (BPAGADAD)

Keywords

• Youth ministry programs
• Religious youth camps
• Mission trip services
• Discipleship coaching
• Rural ministry services

Headquarters

HQ city

Oberlin

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices11 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Camp Registration Fees: Camp registration fees ranging from $185-$200 per participant for week-long camp programs at Camp Joy
2. Donations: Monetary donations from individuals, churches, and supporters to fund ministry operations, camp scholarships, and food donations
3. Food Donations: In-kind food donations (hamburger, sausage, eggs, bacon, cookies) for camp operations

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Teens For Christ is a nonprofit rural youth ministry that operates community youth groups called Connection Groups for middle and high school students, a residential Summer Camp at Camp Joy, short-term Mission Trips, one-on-one Disciplemaking Coaching, an Associate Groups Program that equips and supports partnering rural churches, and an Alumni Ministry that maintains ongoing faith engagement with graduates. All programs are delivered in Northwest Kansas and Southwest Nebraska.

Product overview

TFC Connection is a rural youth ministry organization operating as a single unified program rather than a platform-plus-modules architecture. The organization provides disciplemaking opportunities through community youth groups (Connection Groups) at multiple rural locations, summer camp programs, mission trips, and disciplemaking coaching services. Additional support programs include Associate Groups for affiliated youth ministries and an Alumni ministry for former participants. The various programs work together to connect teens with Jesus Christ and equip them to live out the Great Commission.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Connection Groups

Quantifiable outcome

• 40+ years of ministry impacting thousands of teens in rural communities
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Camp JoycoreOthersCamp Joy in Republican City, NE serves as the location for TFC's two-week summer camp program. The campground hosts teens from across the region for discipleship, fellowship, and spiritual growth activities.
• Rehoboth Christian SchoolsmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocated in Gallup, New Mexico, Rehoboth Christian Schools serves Native American and other students. TFC teams travel there annually for mission trips involving construction work (roofing, painting), cultural exchange, and sharing Jesus with the community. Rehoboth was founded in 1903 as a ministry to the Four Corners region's Native American people.
• Roca Blanca Mission BasemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocated in Oaxaca, Mexico, Roca Blanca is a comprehensive mission base with a school (65 students), boarding school (40 students), music school (45 students), 3-year Bible School (105 students), orphanage, medical clinic, and trade school. TFC teams participate in children's ministry, construction, food distribution, and evangelism. Currently overseeing 84 churches.
• Miriam's Hope/Homestead RefugeminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocated in Oberlin, KS, Miriam's Hope is a local ministry where TFC teams serve on mission trips, developing hearts for missions in local teens.
• Cary Christian CenterminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocated in Cary, Mississippi, the Cary Christian Center hosts TFC mission teams for service and outreach programs.
• Associate GroupscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorYouth groups affiliated with TFC that have access to TFC resources and coaching from staff members. After one year, associate groups can become full TFC groups and receive added benefits including coverage under the corporate insurance policy and access to a 15-passenger van.
• Local Churches (Atwood, Logan, Oberlin, Wakeeney, Smith Center, Codell, Colby, Northern Valley, Phillipsburg, Thunder Ridge)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTFC partners with churches across Northwest Kansas and Southwest Nebraska to provide community youth groups. Churches provide meeting space and volunteers while TFC provides programming, training, resources, and staff support.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Kanakuk Ministries: Kanakuk is a Christian youth camp network in Branson, Missouri, running multi-week summer camps, leadership programs (Kamikaze/K2), and year-round family ministries. Comparable to TFC's Camp Joy as a faith-based residential youth camp experience.
• Youth for Christ (YFC): Youth for Christ is a global Christian youth ministry operating community-based programs, campus ministries, and mission trips. TFC's name and mission explicitly mirror YFC's; YFC is the broader movement of which TFC is a localized expression.
• Young Life: Young Life is a nationwide faith-based youth ministry that runs community clubs, camps (e.g., Malibu, Washington Family Ranch), and mission programs for middle and high schoolers. It is the closest direct peer to TFC in mission and operating model, though operating at vastly larger scale.
• Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA): FCA is a faith-based organization serving student-athletes and coaches through campus huddles, camps, and leadership programs. Comparable to TFC as a youth-focused ministry, though FCA emphasizes athletics whereas TFC emphasizes rural community ministry.
• Pine Cove Camps: Pine Cove operates a network of Christian summer camps across Texas and the Southeast, with week-long residential programs for grades K-12. Comparable to TFC's Camp Joy as a faith-based youth camp operator with structured summer programming.
• Teen Challenge USA: Teen Challenge operates Christian discipleship programs including youth-focused outreach, residential programs, and short-term missions. Comparable to TFC in faith-based youth disciplemaking and ministry approach, though Teen Challenge focuses more on recovery/at-risk populations.
• Teen Mania Ministries: Teen Mania ran faith-based youth leadership programs and summer camps (BattleCry, Acquire the Fire) before scaling back operations. Comparable to TFC as a faith-based youth ministry targeting teens with camp and leadership development programming.
• Cru (Campus Crusade for Christ): Cru is a worldwide Christian ministry with high school, college, and missions programs. Comparable to TFC in faith-based youth engagement and short-term mission trip offerings (e.g., summer missions), though operating at much larger scale globally.

Broad incumbents

• Boys & Girls Clubs of America: Boys & Girls Clubs operates youth development clubs nationwide, including rural affiliates, providing after-school programs, mentoring, and summer activities. Comparable to TFC as a youth-focused nonprofit, though secular and serving broader (not specifically faith-based) mission.

Emerging players

• 4-H (National 4-H Council): 4-H is a youth development organization with strong rural presence and local club structures, operating through county extensions and community partnerships. Comparable to TFC in rural youth development and community-based club model, though secular and agriculture-focused.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/tfcconnection
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/teens-for-christ

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Teens For Christ