Our Story

Epiphany Ministry began with a simple but powerful belief: no life is beyond redemption, and every young person deserve to know the love of Christ – especially those the world often forgets.

In 1991, Rev. Louise Johns and a 14-member board in Montgomery, Alabama, felt a calling to bring the life-changing message of Jesus into juvenile prisons. With the support of the United Methodist Church’s Youth Service Fund, they hosted the first-ever Epiphany weekend—a 2½ day outreach ministry designed to introduce incarcerated youth to the transformative love of God.

Inspired by faith-based ministries like Cursillo, Chrysalis, Kairos, and Walk to Emmaus, the Epiphany model blends worship, personal testimony, small groups, creative expression, and one-on-one encouragement into a powerful experience of grace.

Our Growth

What began in a single facility soon spread across the country. By the late 1990s, Epiphany teams were serving in youth detention centers in over ten states. In 1998, the ministry was launched in Baton Rouge’s Jetson Youth Center under Rev. John Johns. Just a few years later, Rev. James O. Evans helped expand the ministry into the Swanson Youth Centers in Monroe and Tallulah, Louisiana.

Today, Epiphany Ministry is a national 501(c)(3) nonprofit, operating in juvenile facilities across the U.S. Wherever we go, our message stays the same: God is not done with your story.

Our Mission

We serve incarcerated youth through Christ-centered retreats, ongoing mentorship, and committed follow-up—offering hope where the world has given up, and light where darkness seems to rule.

Our teams are made up of volunteers from all denominations and walks of life, united in a single goal: to be the hands and feet of Jesus to the next generation.