A History of Caring for Children and Families in Need

 

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Baptist Children’s Home began 1918 in response to a need in Illinois to care for dependent children who were orphaned as a result of WWI and the great influenza epidemic that struck Illinois.

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Illinois Southern Baptists had the dream of building an orphanage but it was the hard work of three men who made the dream a reality. The pastor of Carmi First Baptist Church, D.F. Marlin, and two of his deacons—Eben Renshaw and John W. Hall led the charge to raise the money needed to build the orphanage.

 

Through the years, the Children’s Home’s ministry has evolved in response to the needs of children and families. No longer a need to care for orphans, the mission changed to focus on the dependent, neglected and/or abused children. In 1995, our name changed to Baptist Children’s Home & Family Services to better reflect that we are more family-focused in our work.

 

Today, BCHFS is a multi-faceted family crisis center consisting of five ministries that work together to protect, heal and restore struggling children and families. Whether it is helping teens in trouble, young women with unplanned pregnancies, or Christian counseling services – BCHFS has been helping those who need it most reach their full potential.