Oakland Family Services Celebrates 100 Years
(OFS, May 21, 2022)
Oakland Family Services, a not-for-profit, accredited child welfare agency and member of the Association of Accredited Child & Family Agencies (AACFA), is celebrating its 100-year anniversary of providing critical services to Michigan’s children and families.
For the last century, Oakland Family Services has helped ensure children have safe and loving homes free from abuse and neglect. The agency also helps children cope with trauma, mental health issues and substance abuse, and provides foster care and adoption services, education and child development programs and treatment.
“We are truly thankful for the communities, families and people across Michigan for their support for the past 100 years,” said Jaimie Clayton, president and CEO of Oakland Family Services. “For 100 years, we have taken great pride in our mission to serve and provide critical resources to Michigan children and families and we will continue to advocate for those in need for the next 100 years in partnership with the amazing and dedicated not-for-profit, accredited child welfare agencies that make up AACFA.”
Oakland Family Services is a valued member of AACFA, and it advocates for fair and adequate funding for Michigan’s not-for-profit, accredited child welfare agencies. Research shows investing in child and family care on the front end pays huge dividends for Michigan’s children, families and taxpayers.
“Oakland Family Services is an important part of Michigan’s child welfare system, and on behalf of AACFA, I congratulate them for 100 years of providing services for Michigan’s children and families,” said Judith Fischer, president of AACFA. “Oakland Family Services has a deep expertise and a proven track record in the area of child welfare and has demonstrated its deep commitment to supporting children and families in need for 100 years.”
The agency started off as a small, nonprofit named the Michigan Children’s Aid Society Oakland Branch in 1921 serving children without homes and over the next 100 years transformed and flourished into the present-day Oakland Family Services, which touched the lives of more than 40,000 individuals last year.
Through its prevention, education and treatment programs, Oakland Family Services has provided safe and loving homes for youth at risk of abuse and neglect, given children access to early learning that can change their lives, and helped those whose lives have been derailed by substance use disorders or mental health issues.
During the mid-1900s, the agency experienced several name changes and mergers before officially changing its name to Oakland Family Services in 1984. A former Elk’s Temple with a bowling alley in the basement was renovated with the help of a capital campaign and turned into our Pontiac location where the Children’s Learning Center opened in 1990.
Over the next 30 years, the agency launched different programs to serve the community, including Project Recovery Intensive Services for Mothers (PRISM) in 1998 and Specialized Services for Youth in 2008. The agency also expanded its preschool services in 2015 with the opening of a second Children’s Learning Center in Walled Lake.
Oakland Family Services will celebrate its 100th anniversary with a series of special events throughout the year. Each event will feature safe, virtual components as needed. They include:
- May 4: Building a Brighter Future Campaign virtual event.
- July 24: A family-friendly 5K run/1K walk event.
- Sept. 24: A Centennial Celebration at Bloomfield Hills Country Club.
“Oakland Family Services has sustained 100 years in operation by being a best-in-class organization serving our communities in Southeastern Michigan,” said Betsy Meter, chair of the Oakland Family Services Board of Directors. “I encourage everyone to join us in celebrating this historic milestone throughout 2021 and get involved to make the next 100 years as impactful. Together we succeed.”
We hope you will join us as we celebrate our 100th anniversary and a century of Oakland Family Services’ unwavering commitment to the community. Learn more at https://www.oaklandfamilyservices.org/
