The Beginning of Christian Youth Homes, Inc.

This blog post is part of our 60th Anniversary Celebration series. Throughout the year we will be taking a look back at Wedgwood’s history of providing distinctively Christian and professionally excellent services to the West Michigan community.

The seeds for Christian youth home were sown in the late 1950s. Caring Christians with a special heart for children were becoming aware of the tremendous needs of young people in the community. One group was made aware of those needs through a city-wide Youth For Christ rally in 1959. During the course of the rally, many young people came forward and shared problems, spiritual and emotional, including family and drug-related problems, with Christian counselors. At the end of the rally week, a group of counselors met together and decided to take further action to meet the needs of hurting young people in the community.

A steering committee was formed which met with local child welfare and Juvenile Court officials to determine the extent of the need. A particularly crucial meeting took place at the home of Dr. and Mrs. Donald Johns. During the course of several meetings, members of the group became further sensitized to the needs of young people. They learned that, while there were many services available for younger children, the teenage community was not very well served.

On July 19, 1960, the group incorporated and formed a new organization called Christian Youth Homes, Inc. Dr. Louis Paul Lehman was elected as chairman of the first board of directors, and Frances Johns was named Secretary-Treasurer. Other members of the board of directors included Donald Pelon, Dr. David Otic Fuller, Donald Lautenbach, Marguerite Potter, Elenore Wisner, and Jean Kamp.

Filled with conviction and determined to be faithful to God’s will, the new board members began to familiarize themselves with the requirements for operating a child-caring organization. They also began an extensive search for an appropriate facility.

Eventually, they were lead to a stately old house at 333 Fountain Street, across from Central High School. Constructed more than 100 years earlier as the mansion of a lumber baron, the old house was spacious and had rich character. It was also in need of a lot of work!

Volunteers were enlisted and soon found themselves elbow-deep in soap and water as they began the important task of converting an old house into a real home – a place of refuge for hurting girls. The home was dedicated on Thanksgiving Day, November 23, 1961, at 7 p.m., following an Open House. The theme was: “God hath done great things for us; whereof we are glad.”

Lucille Schregardus, a well qualified social worker, had been hired by that time as the first Director. She and board member Jean Kamp, also a trained social worker, deserve much credit or helping the fledgling organization establish a firm professional footing to accompany its strong commitment as a Christian agency.

Having successfully accomplished this difficult task, Lucille was eventually succeeded as Director as Ruth Bryson. A very capable, committed woman, Mrs. Bryson provided strong leadership for a period of almost 5 years. During her tenure as Director, Christian Youth Homes began to mature and gain respect in the professional community as an effective agency for the care and treatment of troubled girls. Most important, young lives were being touched and redeemed for God’s Kingdom.

On January 15, 1968, a young man named Dick Gritter became the third Director of Christian Youth Homes, succeeding Ruth Bryson. A short time later Ardis Linton was appointed as the agency’s first full-time secretary/book-keeper. By that time the officed had moved to 60 Ransom N.E. in Downtown Grand Rapids, and the budget had grown to approximately $45,000.

Because the need for services continued to grow, two additional fine old homes were acquired in 1968 – after a good bit of prayer, planning, and searching. The first, located at 1245 Lake Drive S.E., was opened in January 1969 as a second 12 bed residence for girls. Later that year, the office was moved from Ransom St. to 1230 Lake Drive, with the understanding that one day “1230” would become a third Christian Youth Home.

Besides the founders, there were many persons who gave generously of their time and talents to the Christian Youth Homes ministry during those early years. Joyce Gerrard was the first full-time caseworker and counseled effectively with many of the girls. Florence Westing provided energetic leadership for an enthusiastic group of women who comprised the C.Y.H guilds. Board member Don Hendricks is remembered for agility in crawling through the attics and basement of the Fountain Street Home in a valiant attempt to keep the plumbing and electricity in repair. Don Lautenbach, Ray Van Tuinen, and Dick Parramore provided vital leadership in their terms as President A fine Christian physician anonymously provided all the medical care without charge. Mr. and Mrs. Cornelious Kos began ten-year labor of love as house parents. They are lovingly remembered as “Dad and Mom” by dozens of girls to this day. The list goes on…

As the first decade of Christian Youth Homes’ history came to a close, the future looked bright. God had blessed in abundance. Many young lives had been touched. But the scent of change was in the air. Regular discussions were being held with Wedgwood Acres Christian Home for Boys. Where would these discussions lead? What was God’s will for the second decade?

This article originally appeared in “Celebrating God’s Goodness – 25 years of Wedgwood Acres Christian Youth Homes” newsletter in 1985.