HumanKind Celebrates 120 Years

On July 1, 1903, the Presbyterian Orphans Home was opened with five children. Today, just 120 years later and now known as HumanKind, the organization serves more than 17,500 people each year.

What an incredible legacy our founders started long ago – a mission to care for children and families who were facing hardships.

Today our mission remains the same – strengthening individuals, children, and families through care counseling and education. HumanKind focuses on building people up by providing guidance and the tools to build a better life. We are on a mission to empower people to thrive.

Together we will strengthen people, we will strengthen families and we will build a stronger community.

HumanKind, formerly Presbyterian Homes & Family Services, has strengthened families and communities in many different capacities since 1903, changing our services to meet the needs of the communities we serve. Our mission to strengthen individuals, families, and communities through care, counseling, and education has been consistent, providing guidance and assistance to those looking to live better and healthier lives.

Here’s a quick trip down memory lane of the last 120 years…

Started as an orphanage by Presbyterians in Eastern Virginia, thousands of children grew up on our campus in Lynchburg due to difficult circumstances of their families. Roughly between 75-100 children were cared for on campus at any given time.
In the 1960’s, we dedicated resources to address the growing demand of young adults with intellectual disabilities.
We developed a range of high quality community based services for children and families responding to significant political pressure in Virginia to dramatically reduce the number of children in residential care.
We joined our efforts with those of another 100-year-old agency serving Central Virginia, The Family Alliance. With this merger, we created a continuum of services ranging from prevention, education and healthy lifestyles for children to long-term residential care for adults.
For more than a decade there has been a shift away from residential homes for children to prevention, foster families, adoption and community-based services. We have been resilient and built momentum, awareness and success in this approach.
With a strong commitment to increasing our impact, our staff and board adopted (in 2012) and introduced (in 2014) a brand that reflects our dynamic and inclusive culture. Respectful of our founders and appreciative of all who prepared the way, today, we are HumanKind. (Our legal name remains Presbyterian Homes and Family Services, Inc.) The name HumanKind reflects our mission to serve people, to meet them where they are and be active in caring for their unique needs.

With care, counseling and education, we are building on 120 years of faithful service to strengthen children, families and communities across our region.

In our second century of service, our team of kind, helpful, smart, fun, and insightful staff and volunteers is energized. We continually give thanks for the continued support of individual, church, corporate and foundation donors which sustain us.

Join us in celebrating 120 years of caring for our neighbors in need. Grateful to have had the support of so many across the state. Looking forward to the next 120 years of service.