Oakland Family Services kicks off centennial celebration
Oakland Family Services is kicking off the new year celebrating its 100th year of building brighter futures for individuals and families in our community!
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.
“It’s not often that a nonprofit organization reaches such a monumental milestone,” said Jaimie Clayton, president and CEO of Oakland Family Services. “We are looking forward to both revisiting what 100 years of service has meant to our community since our founding in 1921 and also setting our gaze upon the next 100 years and all that we have left to accomplish.”
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:
“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.