FOSTER CARE HOPETREE ACADEMY THERAPEUTIC GROUP HOMES DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES MINISTRY EVENTS ABOUT US CAREERS SUPPORT CONTACT DONATE HISTORY OF HOPETREE Through God’s love, we foster hope by empowering families, youth, and adults to lead fulfilling lives. Name Change During the 1930s and 1940s, Trustees of the Baptist Orphanage noticed a change in the children who came to the Orphanage. More and more often the children were not actually orphans; instead, their families placed them with the Baptist Orphanage because of economic hardships. By the early 1950s, very few residents of the Orphanage were actually orphaned. To more accurately reflect the nature of their ministry efforts, the Board of Trustees voted to change the Orphanage’s name to Virginia Baptist Children’s Home in 1953. Over the next three decades, the Baptist Children’s Home noticed yet another shift in the situations that brought children into care. Increasingly children came to the Home because of abuse or neglect rather than families’ financial difficulties. In response to this societal change, the Children’s Home developed new ministries to reach and heal not just the children, but their families as well. By 1985, the Board of Trustees again recognized the need for a name change to reflect the Home’s expanded goal of healing the children in its care and their families. Thus, Virginia Baptist Children’s Home became Virginia Baptist Children’s Home & Family Services. New Ministries The services the Children’s Home provided continued to evolve as time passed and society’s needs changed. In 1992, the Children’s Home ventured in a new direction by founding a ministry that serves adults with intellectual disabilities – the Developmental Disabilities Ministry. This new effort focused on creating home-like environments to provide long-term support for adults who need specialized support to live full, productive lives. The Developmental Disabilities Ministry now operates 19 group homes across Virginia from Abingdon to Virginia Beach. Children’s Home becomes HopeTree With its expanded ministries, which now include DDM homes, foster families, alternative education schools, and other services, the Children’s Home bears little resemblance to the Baptist Orphanage of the 1890s. Therefore, another change became necessary. A new name was needed that would be inclusive of all of our programs, open our doors to all denominations, and convey our statewide locations beyond our former, singular “home” title. Thus, we adopted HopeTree Family Services as a ‘Doing Business As’ name. (We are still legally known as Virginia Baptist Children’s Home & Family Services but use HopeTree Family Services in all public endeavors.) The word ‘hope’ is short, strong, and defines in one word the single greatest benefit we offer all those who come to us for care. For over 20 years, a tree has been part of our imagery. A tree symbolizes strength, shelter, endurance, and vibrant life. Keeping the tree as our logo represents the sheltering comfort we provide as well as the strength of an organization that has thrived for over 100 years. Our name has changed, yet the overall goal has remained the same: to provide quality Christian care to people in need. Through God’s love, we foster hope by empowering families, youth, and adults to lead fulfilling lives. © 2021 HopeTree Family Services | Privacy Policy Home About Us Careers Contact Board Portal