Our History

“I have begun my work. I have two boys, ages six and seven.”

This message—written by Oak Park’s Mary Wessels on a postcard addressed to a friend in 1897—is one of the few remaining records of Hephzibah’s beginnings more than a century ago.

Not long after Wessels sent this postcard, a local orphanage was destroyed by fire and she opened her home and her heart to a dozen more children. She named her fledgling children’s home “Hephzibah,” after her own mother.

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1902-1919

Soon, neighbors and local merchants began dropping by with donations of food, clothing and whatever else they could spare. As word spread about Wessels’ work, the Oak Park and River Forest community responded with generosity and compassion.

“Much is done for these little ones, a large percentage of whom come into the home undernourished, with enlarged tonsils, adenoids, neglected teeth, rickets and the ills resulting from those conditions,” Wessels wrote about this outpouring of support. With the donated medical care and wholesome food that the children now enjoyed, she added, “it would be strange if these children did not respond.”

As the children grew and thrived, so did Hephzibah. In 1902, Hephzibah Home was officially established as a nonprofit organization with the help of Oak Park and River Forest residents who were concerned about the well-being of the community’s destitute children.

1920-1973

By the 1920s, the number of children in need of safe and loving shelter had surpassed the capacity of Wessels’ Lake Street house. It was time for larger quarters—and the local community donated enough money to turn this dream into a reality. The building was designed in the shape of the letter “H”—for healing, hope, happiness and, of course, Hephzibah!

Work crews broke ground in 1926 and put the finishing touches on the residence in 1929. That same year, the stock market crashed, ending the economic prosperity of the Roaring Twenties and plunging America into the Great Depression. The newly constructed children’s home opened its doors just in time to serve as a haven for Depression-era children whose parents could no longer afford to care for them.

During the tumultuous 1930s and 1940s—a time of war and economic hardship—children were housed at Hephzibah for many different reasons. Some came from broken homes or families in crisis, while others were brought to Hephzibah because their impoverished parents could not provide for them. Still others found a safe harbor at Hephzibah while their fathers were off at war.

1974-1994

By 1974, times had changed. More women were entering the workforce, and the need for nurturing, enriching and affordable daycare had surpassed the need for a children’s home. Hephzibah temporarily suspended its residential program and launched a Day Care Program that provided educational, cultural and social enrichment for school-aged children. By 1997 Hephzibah would be providing day care for 600 children at eight elementary schools and one summer day camp location. Between 1981 and 1992, Hephzibah went through another period of unprecedented growth as the organization expanded its mission further.

During this decade-long expansion, Hephzibah launched foster care and child welfare programs to protect children from neglect and abuse; opened one of the state’s only diagnostic treatment centers to assess the physical, emotional and psychological needs of neglected and abused children; introduced a comprehensive array of services for families in crisis; and established a residential treatment program to give children traumatized by neglect, abuse, failed adoptions or abandonment the long-term therapeutic supports they need to heal and succeed in a family setting.

1995-Now

Today, Hephzibah Children’s Association serves more than 1,000 children and their families each year with a residential treatment program for children; services for families struggling with issues such as poverty, chronic disease, mental illness, substance abuse or homelessness; foster care and adoption programs for children in need of loving homes; and award-winning after-school daycare on a sliding scale for families of all income levels.

What began as one woman’s quest to help children in need more than a century ago has evolved into a full-service, internationally recognized agency with a multifaceted mission to enhance the safety and well-being of children while preserving the dignity of parents and families.

Just as Mary Wessels’ mission was embraced by a caring community in the late 19th century, Hephzibah continues to be supported and sustained by a compassionate and committed corps of staff and board members, benefactors, corporate and community partners and volunteers in the 21st century. We know Mary would be proud to know that her life’s work has been carried on for more than 100 years!

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