Originally published October 28, 2018 at 12:08 a.m., updated October 28, 2018 at 11:36 p.m.
By Sean Barron
VIENNA
The local branch of a longtime organization aimed at encouraging young people to make positive choices is set to dissolve early next year, but don’t assume that means the end of its mission.
“We’re changing the capacity of our ministry,” Mary L. Duke explained about the status of Teen Straight Talk, an organization she and her late husband, Roland Duke, founded in 1989. “I’ve enjoyed every phase of ministering.”
Duke, 82, spoke recently at TST’s office, 1393 Youngstown-Kingsville Road SE (state Route 193), about continuing outreach efforts that will shift from focusing mainly on teenagers to more on families.
The main thrust will be to bring what she feels is God’s truth to teens and their family members, with a focus on abstinence and the importance of making sound moral decisions, the executive director explained.
The area office is set to close in January, but TST will continue to operate branches in North and South Carolina, Duke added.
Abstinence means refraining not just from sexual activity before marriage, but also from other behaviors and choices the nonprofit, faith-based program considers high-risk or harmful, noted Ted Smith, the organization’s curriculum consultant and educator.
As TST evolved and broadened its scope and reach, the program has partnered with physicians, pastors, counselors and other professionals to offer a more holistic approach toward helping young people, Smith explained.
The Dukes started the organization to address what they viewed as a growing epidemic of teenage pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases in society.
TST’s conception began when Mary Duke was volunteering in the early 1980s at the Rescue Mission of the Mahoning Valley and New Life Home, a facility for unwed teenage mothers.
Over the years, Duke and her staff have spoken to thousands of Mahoning Valley teens in schools, churches and other settings about the organization’s abstinence program.
In 1999, TST members visited Spartanburg, S.C., on their first mission trip and have since traveled throughout the U.S. and embarked on trips to Zimbabwe, South Africa, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, El Salvador and elsewhere.
Duke’s organization also has received a variety of awards and recognitions, including two White House invitations during National AIDS Week, and was selected as one of 25 national programs for the faith-based Abstinence Initiative. In addition, she was the recipient of the Professional Women of Trumbull County Achievement Award.
Too many families today are broken, fragmented or bereft of God’s word, unlike 30 years ago when TST debuted, “so that makes ministering to entire families that much more imperative and urgent,” Duke explained. In the late ’80s, “most homes were intact,” and the family unit enjoyed greater stability, she continued.
“Children deserve better than what our culture is offering them right now,” Duke said, adding a major challenge has been successfully spreading TST’s message in schools but too often not having it reinforced at home.
In addition, it’s vital that churches work in greater conjunction with families to offer alternatives to “combat negative cultural choices,” said Duke, who added God can help people through difficulties, but they have to choose him as the foundation for their lives.
For his part, Smith said his 18 years with TST has provided tremendous personal and spiritual growth, and he’s pleased the organization continues to embrace abstinence as a priority while focusing much more on young people’s uniqueness and virtues than on their actions.
He also had nothing but praise for Duke, as well as her ability to connect with and influence youngsters with her wisdom.
“It’s been extremely rewarding for me. I’ve grown immensely by working with Mary and her late husband,” he said. “People often say to Mary, ‘I never knew that. I wish I’d been told that.’”
Duke said even though the building in Vienna will soon cease to be used, TST’s principles and presence will continue to be felt in the region.
“I want to thank the community and everyone who’s accepted abstinence as truth. We’ll continue on our journey,” she added.