The United Methodist Children’s Home was established in 1871 to care for children orphaned during the Civil War. Originally called the Methodist Orphans’ Home and located in Norcross, the Home moved in 1873 to our present location in Decatur.
By the early 1930s, the Home was serving large numbers of children who could not be termed orphans; therefore, in 1934 the trustees approved changing the name to Methodist Children’s Home.
Our campus had its own water system, school and church, and provided much of the food for the children food from the farm. Elementary students continued in the on-campus school until about 1950, when they were absorbed into the DeKalb County system. Farm operations decreased over the years and were completely stopped in the 1960s.
The two primary services we provided initially were orphanage care and higher education assistance. Many children came to the Home at an early age and stayed until they went away to college or out on their own. Capacity was 150 by the late 1960s.
Over the years, the Children’s Home began offering additional services to children, teens and families, including foster care, adoption, independent living, transitional living, and family housing.
In August 2015, the Board of Trustees approved a new strategic plan that would expand our foster care services. To meet Georgia’s growing foster care crisis, we are expanding our services from an average of 70 foster children a day, to 500 a day by 2020, in partnership with local churches.
If you are interested in reading more about Children’s Home history, contact the Public Relations department for information about ordering Home Life: A History of the United Methodist Children’s Home.