BOISE -- The Idaho Youth Ranch is announcing a big change.
After 60 years in the Magic Valley near Rupert, the ranch facility that houses troubled youth will be closing its doors in the coming years.
Idaho Youth Ranch President and CEO Steve Woodworth says it's a decision they've been discussing for a long time.
The ranch is a place that has provided a home for kids to live and get counseling, along with animal therapy.
It has even gained national attention with a visit by the Today Show.
But Woodworth says the facility is starting to fall apart, and more importantly, it's hard for the families they serve to get there.
The non-profit says while it may be an emotional move for many, it's the right decision in order to help even more kids across the state.
The ranch offers not just a home, but counseling, classes, and animal therapy to help those needing specialized care for behavioral issues.
Kids can really benefit by working with animals, kids who are traumatized, it really helps with their trauma, they can really learn a lot about their own lives and behavior by working with the horses, said Woodworth.
But the non-profits' leaders says it's time to move on.
We had to make a pretty big decision that is moving our ranch campus where we were founded in the Magic Valley to this area, said Woodworth.
Woodworth says over the next few years they will phase out the ranch and begin building three similar locations in the Treasure Valley, northern and eastern Idaho.
He says the current location needs repairs and the facility needs to be closer to the families it serves.
It's a really an isolated location there, takes a long time to get there from here and other parts of state, said Woodworth.
The non-profit is run mostly on money made by the Idaho Youth Ranch thrift stores you see around town, and donations to the organization started 60 years ago by founders Rev. James and Ruby Crowe, with the goal to help as many kids as possible.
Senior vice president for programs Dr. Robert Ball says they will take the best of the ranch and pass it on to the new facilities.
We're able to take all the stuff we have there that we know works and add to it, said Ball.
But after so many years of good work, everyone knows it will be hard to say good-bye to the place that's changed so many.
We knew going in to this some people would be upset, and it's hard for some folks from an emotional standpoint, but I think what's important is that the ranch has become more than a facility, said Woodworth.
Over the decades, the Idaho Youth Ranch has helped 25,000 families and kids.
Leaders tell us another big benefit of moving to closer to the city will be the proximity to community programs.
Woodworth tells us they are still in the planning period and the transition will probably take about two and a half years.
As for the current ranch property, they're not sure whether they will sell it, or use it for another purpose.
