User:David morstad/Bethesda Lutheran Homes and Services

Bethesda Lutheran Homes & Services is a Lutheran human service organization serving people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

History
Bethesda was founded on April 13, 1904 in Watertown, Wisconsin by Children’s Friends Societies from seven Midwestern states. The name chosen at the time was not Bethesda, but rather “The Society for the Training and Care of the Feebleminded and Epileptic”. The five original clients moved into rented quarters in Watertown

In 1906, the organization had grown to serve 14 people, but lost its lease. It relocated to a small vacant sanitarium in Milwaukee, Wisconsin for 2½ years and grew to serve a total of 40 people. Having outgrown its Milwaukee location, the organization returned to Watertown in 1909 where the first permanent building was located on farmland along the banks of the Rock River. Above the main entrance to that building was placed a stone inscribed with a single word, “Bethesda”. The word is Hebrew for “House of Mercy” and is taken from a story of healing in the 5th Chapter of the Gospel of John. The name of the organization was not officially changed to Bethesda until 1923.

The original building quickly filled and others were built to accommodate a growing need for space. Through the first 40 years of its existence, Bethesda made use of the surrounding farmland and orchards to provide much of their own food. Since, by today’s standards, the people served at that time were very capable, many provided the necessary labor.

By 1970 the population of Bethesda had grown to 660. In response to this large number of people along with the growing level of individual needs the board of directors and administration began to seek more appropriate living settings for many people. For others, they began to explore the possibility of establishing group homes away from Watertown and closer to people’s families. In 1977 the first Bethesda group home was established in Maryville, Missouri. Many others were to follow.

The 1980s and 90s were marked by significant expansion of services in a number of states. In two locations, Kansas and Texas, Bethesda acquired existing programs that were facing financial difficulties. Both programs are functioning and still expanding today. In Illinois, a number of new facilities were constructed.

In the early 1980s Bethesda established the National Christian Resource Center (NCRC). The NCRC provides outreach services beyond the individuals we support. The NCRC produces religious education materials for churches; staff training materials for other service providers; referral information to parents, teachers and pastors; and scholarship and award programs for grade school, high school and college students.

In 2006, Good Shepherd Communities (GSC), another Lutheran agency serving people with disabilities, became wholly controlled subsidiary of Bethesda. The histories of the two agencies had been intertwined since GSC’s inception. In 1949, Norma and Paul Yorde traveled from California to Watertown, Wisconsin to inquire about placing their son on a waiting list for admission to Bethesda. Unable to meet their son’s needs, Bethesda provided consultation and initial funding to establish Good Shepherd Lutheran Home of the West.

Today, Bethesda supports individuals in 13 states and works in partnership with other agencies such as Impact and World Relief and Human Care to provide special programs in Latvia, Romania, Russia, Kenya and the Dominican Republic.

Advocacy
Through its Bethesda Voices program, an online community, Bethesda seeks to improve public policy affecting people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Its purpose is to educate, engage and mobilize support for system reforms and improvements, and to seek improved and sustainable funding for services and supports. A primary focus is Medicaid reform. Specifically, helping to make funding more accessible to people seeking services in the community as opposed to larger, institutional settings.

Programs
Bethesda currently provides services in Wisconsin, Illinois, Kansas, Missouri, Texas, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, New Jersey, California, Oregon, Washington and Colorado. Most people served by Bethesda receive residential supports in group homes and apartments. Bethesda also provides vocational training either on its own or by contracting with other local providers.

Outreach Services
Through its primary outreach portal, the National Christian Resource Center (NCRC), Bethesda produces and distributes curricula and other resources supporting the spiritual lives of people with disabilities. Since 1986, the NCRC has also produced staff training materials for distribution to other professional support providing agencies.

Camp Matz
In a wooded area of its Watertown campus, Bethesda operates Camp Matz, a fully accessible camp for people with disabilities. The camp offers 12, week-long sessions staffed by volunteers who are part of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod’s Servant Event program. The camp includes paved hiking trails, cabins, and an outdoor chapel area. Since 2004, the Camp has been home to the only fully wheelchair accessible treehouse in the Midwest.