GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — D.A. Blodgett – St. John's opened their new headquarters campus Thursday. The nonprofit will now call a 36-acre campus on Dean Lake Avenue home, giving them a significantly larger space to assist children and their families going through difficult situations.
"We couldn't be more excited. It's really got a space for every child and every parent,” President & CEO of D.A. Blodgett – St. John's Mary Muliett told FOX 17 Thursday.
“One hundred thirty-six years of innovation is our legacy, and we're living it today.”
It was all the way back in the 1880s when the D.A. Blodgett Home for Children opened up in Grand Rapids. St. John's Orphan Asylum would open up in 1889 near the corner of Lafayette and Leonard.
Both organizations have always had a focus on lifting children out of troubling scenarios, providing them resources to thrive.
It was in the early 1920s that both organizations formed foster programs, with the goal of finding families for the children being housed and helped.
Fast-forward to 2010 and the two agencies became one.
They began fundraising for the new facility in August 2018. The facility cost about $13.9 million to build.
The new two-story structure will serve as both the agency's administrative center and location for all children and family services.
"It allows for collaboration, it allows for efficiency for our team and it gives our team a space of sanctuary to come back to and support kids,” Muliett said.
“Our family visit space and our lobby has sensory spaces for kids with different needs, and for our parents to have a space to relax while their child's seeing one of our therapists, or meeting with a case manager.”
You can find out about all of the services offered by D.A. Blodgett – St. John's by visiting their website HERE.
