CEO Interview: Handing off the Baton

Volume MMXIII, Issue 2 2013
CEO Interview: Handing off the Baton
In addition to the celebration of
our 110th Anniversary, 2013 will be
noteworthy in the history of Christ’s
Home as the year when Rich Smyth
completed twenty years of service as our
CEO in May, followed by his retirement
on June 30, 2013. Rich’s tenure is second
in length to our founder, Dr. Albert
Richard F. Smyth Oetinger, who led Christ’s Home for the
CEO
first 31 years. We took time to sit down with
Rich and his successor John Bryant (Executive Director of the
Retirement Community since September, 2010) to reminisce a
bit and also take a look at the future of the Children’s Program
and Retirement Community.
Rich was asked to share some thoughts regarding his
years as CEO for Christ’s Home that began in 1993, and what
the Lord has in store for him beginning on July 1, 2013.
Share some program highlights from the last 20 years.
“I have been pleased to see the Children’s Program
respond to the changing needs in the area of Child Welfare
services by filling niches like the Infant & Toddler cottage,
the Transitional Living Program for teenagers preparing to
live as independent young adults, and the Teen Mother &
Baby cottage. Our relationship with several counties has
helped Christ’s Home stay relevant to the needs of the day
while providing financial stability. We try our best to plug
into identified needs in the county. In terms of senior care at
the Retirement Community, we have been able to grow and
provide new facilities that position us for the next 30-40 years
in terms of modern accommodations and capacity for the
growing population of retirees.”
What would you identify as courageous?
“A passage of scripture that has been very meaningful
for me is Joshua chapter 1 where God tells Joshua three times
to ‘be strong and courageous’. During the first few years of
my time as CEO I came to realize it would take courage to
make changes at Christ’s Home to
keep the Children’s Program relevant
to changing needs and regulations, as
well as sifting through the Retirement
Community needs and future plans.
Change is hard on everyone, but trends
in society and the rules that govern
both of our programs require that we
keep up and plan ahead. I believe
John Bryant
God led me to Christ’s Home to guide
Executive Director
it through challenging but necessary
of the Retirement
changes. While this took courage, I know
Community
that behind God’s call was His promise
to never leave or forsake me. So there was a lot of personal
growth for me, to go along with the advancement of our
programs for children and seniors. The commitments we made
to transform the Retirement Community required corporate
courage of the Trustees and the Administrative team.”
Continued on page 2
The Touch of His Hand: What God Has Accomplished!
One hundred and ten years of continuous service to children - thousands of individual life stories - hundreds of sibling
groups - residential placements ranging from a few weeks to eighteen years - times of blessing
through shortage and plenty.
It is hard to adequately capture all that God has done through the ministry
of Christ’s Home for Children since October, 1903. In addition to the children directly
impacted by the residential program that started at 981 N. Fifth Street in Philadelphia,
we know by God’s grace that the reach of this ministry has been much broader in several
ways.
Visiting missionaries have been blessed with shared resources from God’s
abundance; former staff have gone on to foster new ministries to families and children;
and some of those who lived for a while in one of our children’s cottages have opened
their homes as adults to children in need of a family to raise and care for them.
Andrea and Henry Bomberger
It is a blessing and source of encouragement to share some recently learned
stories of how God has used Christ’s Home to impact a great number of lives through the influence of this ministry.
Continued on page 3
“Driving in” Donations!
Lanco Speedway owners, fans, and drivers worked together to raise funds for
the Christ’s Home Children’s Program on April 27th. It was a clear cool night in
Newmanstown, Pennsylvania, but the reception of the children in attendance from
Christ’s Home was warm and the racing was hot! The idea for this special night
to help Christ’s Home was fostered by Ryan Morris, a very successful 16 year old
sprint car driver who has been racing since the age of five. It coincided with the
Fan Appreciation night cosponsored by Animal Resorts and the Speedway Board
of Directors. The children were invited to visit pit row before racing began where
they met Ryan and enjoyed some delicious food in the team trailer. Attendees
brought hundreds of non-perishable items as a contribution for the Home, and
in addition, drivers went through the stands with their helmets to collect $1,600
in contributions. Chris Snyder of Hyper Racing went to work in the weeks before
the event collecting additional donations from businesses and individuals totaling
$2,450. The evening also featured the presentation of a $5,000 check from the
private foundation of Jim &
Jane McElya who are racing enthusiasts and friends of the Morris family.
Christ’s Home offers a special word of thanks to Michelle Morris, Ryan’s
mother, who helped pull many of the details for the night together.
In everything I did, I showed you that by
this kind of hard work we must help the weak,
remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said:
‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.
Acts 20:35
Handing off the Baton, Continued
What has been transformed?
A title hasn’t been given yet, but I see myself as an ambassador
in Jesus’ name for everything we stand for and do.”
“I have been transformed personally by God’s grace.
The Children’s Program has been updated bringing us into a
solid working relationship with surrounding counties for the
benefit of children and their families. This connection has had a
positive impact on our community relationships to the glory of
God. The needs in each county are not the same, as for instance
in Lancaster, where the foster care community is very strong.
I am confident that one thing hasn’t changed from the time of
Dr. Oetinger, and this is the desire to honor God in our service,
choices, and the decision making process. We have retained
the spiritual component of who we are while also becoming
the placement of choice for Bucks County Children & Youth, in
particular by meeting the needs of sibling groups. After a great
deal of planning, the physical transformation of the Retirement
Community began in 2008 and is nearly complete, presenting
significant expansion of facilities and services to the senior
adults.”
I believe the core values and mission of Christ’s Home
have been consistent for 110 years even though different
words may fit today, and the key to this is the underlying
importance of introducing individual souls to the love of Jesus.
We continue our commitment to disadvantaged children and
the senior adults who choose the Retirement Community as
their final earthly home. Our decisions will continue to be
sifted through scripture, prayer, and thoughtful discussions.
In addition, I am particularly pleased to have a renewed
involvement with international children’s ministries in Kenya
and India by lifting them up in prayer, offering some guidance,
and providing financial help.”
As July 1, 2013 approaches in just a few weeks, John Bryant
gave us his thoughts as he prepares to transition into his new
role as CEO.
What have been your most notable discoveries about Christ’s
Home in your first 30 months?
Describe your role at Christ’s Home going forward.
“It will be a part time involvement in several areas. The
Trustees recognize my experience and commitment to Christ’s
Home and the Lord, so they have asked me to be the point
person in seeing the Retirement Community project through
to completion. In addition, I hope to assist the chaplain in his
ministry with our growing senior population and continue to
help with fundraising to meet the financial needs of the agency.
“I was impressed early on with the commitment and
strength of our Board of Trustees. I have had experience
with boards at other organizations, and I believe we have an
outstanding group of dedicated leaders on the Board and in our
Senior Management. I also quickly observed and appreciate the
committed, caring and serving hearts of our employees.
Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful
to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. Joshua 1:8
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international children’s agencies we are supportive of, we
hope to be an ongoing source of blessing and encouragement
to them.”
In my conversations with other retirement community
directors, I know we do not need to deal with many of the
trivial issues that are a drain on everyone’s time and energy.”
“The residents are wonderful, and I have really
enjoyed getting to know them. As our number of retirees
grows, I am witnessing the development of community and
the caring spirit they have for one another—including a
growing support for the Children’s Program. This spirit is
exceeding expectations.”
What is the most important thing you would like to
communicate with our stakeholders?
“Rich commented on the importance of our core
values and mission which I am fully committed to, these stay
What will you miss most about the day to day oversight of
the Retirement Community?
“I will miss my daily interaction with the staff. I will
work at staying in touch, but at the same time, I need to let go
and allow the new director to lead as I focus on my expanded
role.”
What challenges are on the horizon for the Christ’s Home
programs?
“I am in full agreement with Rich in regard to the
strength of our commitment to the core values and mission
of the home in both programs. As our expanded health care
building comes on line we are adding the significant service
to seniors in need of memory care. This is a new provision
at Christ’s Home and we want to do it well and have hired
experienced personnel to lead it and get us off to a good
start. Because there are many retirement communities to
choose from we also need to keep abreast of the services
and amenities that people are looking for as they make the
important decision of where they want to live.”
in place. We are blessed to have stability and longevity in
our senior management and Board of Trustees, and together
we rely on God for direction in new areas of service and
ministry. We don’t consider ourselves ‘to have arrived’, but
look toward the future with the desire to flex and grow while
staying connected to our core.”
We take this opportunity to thank Rich for his
dedication to Jesus Christ and Christ’s Home as demonstrated
by his many years of faithful and tireless service. His
commitment to prayer and the study of scripture formed the
basis for his godly leadership during a period of great change
in our history. We also want to congratulate John Bryant on
his promotion to the position of CEO and are grateful for his
commitment to following Rich’s legacy based on a close walk
with the Lord and demonstrated leadership qualities.
“In the children’s program it is exciting that we have
received our licensing to provide foster care and adoption
services. We have ‘clearance to fly’, and in particular, can
help children transition from our residential program
to their adoptive family verses handing their case off to
another agency. We will continue our alliance with county
agencies and seek to develop additional program services for
children in the community. As Rich mentioned regarding the
The Touch of His Hand, Continued
OVER THE YEARS
Andrea Boas was five years old when she came to live on our Paradise campus for nine months in 1950. Her mother and
father had just gone through a difficult breakup. Andrea’s mother didn’t have a job or a driver’s license, and could not find a
place for them to live. Christ’s Home for Children was suggested by their family doctor as a possible temporary solution where
Andrea
would be cared for while her mother worked on how to provide for herself and her only child.
Christ’s Home did indeed have room for Andrea in Paradise, and she came to live there in the fall of that year where
she says, “I felt safe for the first time in my life.” She remained in care until her sixth birthday came about in the spring of 1951.
By that time her mother was working and had made arrangements for the two of them to move in with Andrea’s maternal
grandparents. Her parents did eventually get back together for another 15 years of marriage and had another daughter who is
nine years younger than Andrea.
During her months at Christ’s Home, living with houseparents Ed & Ruth Jerchau, Andrea was introduced to the Word
of God and the gospel of Jesus Christ. She remembers the impact on her life of a guest speaker who visited the Paradise campus.
She also recalled sitting on one of the swings in the playground and thinking about the message of the gospel she had heard. In
that setting she trusted Jesus as her savior.
During her stay at Christ’s Home, Andrea remembers being touched in her heart by the experience of another child.
This girl had a physical deformity and seemed very lonely because she didn’t have anyone who visited her, as most of the other
children did. Andrea can’t explain how a five year old can gain a sense of calling in their life, but at that age she made a promise
to God that she would “take care of kids who had no one to visit them.” She further shared that, “Christ’s Home provided the
foundation for what I did with my life.”
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During her teen years growing
up in Lancaster she dated different
guys and always shared with them
that she wanted to adopt a lot of
kids, but it was Henry Bomberger
who didn’t flinch one bit at the
idea. Henry and Andrea met as
teenagers in Ocean City, New
Jersey during the annual Youth for
Christ conference. Henry, who has
for the last four years been dealing
with advanced Parkinson’s disease
said about Andrea, “I got the
prize.”
Their family journey began when they were wed at age 20, and started
having children a few years later. Over the years, Henry and Andrea fulfilled her
promise to God by adopting 10 children in addition to having three biological
children. As the family grew they bought a large farm house with ten bedrooms
making room for everyone including Andrea’s grandmother. The Bombergers now
have 28 grandchildren (of which three are adopted) and three great grandchildren.
OVER LANDS AND SEAS
One year ago
we shared that Christ’s
Home was developing a
relationship with Mahiga,
a children’s orphanage in
the Kikuyu region of Kenya,
and Sunshine Ministries, a
residential Christian school in
India that tends to the needs
of impoverished children in
El Ranch Del Rey
36 villages around the city
of Hyderabad. Recently, in
November of 2012, we were intrigued to discover that a Christian children’s home
in Nuevo Leon, Mexico was begun in the mid-1950s by a couple whose lives had
been touched by Christ’s Home.
El Rancho Del Rey was founded by Henry (Hank) and Anne Moller, a
missionary couple from the United States, who followed God’s leading to their life’s
work in Mexico in 1954. Anne grew up in Warminster, Pennsylvania, “not far from
an orphanage called Christ’s Home”. During her visits and interaction there, Anne
first felt the warmth of God’s inspiring love,
and witnessed what could be accomplished
through His people. The history of El Rancho
Del Rey states that it was largely through
the divine influence of Christ’s Home t`hat,
at age 13, Anne accepted God’s redemptive
grace and that soon her sister, Gladys, as
well as the rest of the family, followed in a
profession of faith. Nearly sixty years later,
their son, Dan Moller, leads this children’s
home in Mexico as the executive director.
Dan shared that contact with Christ’s Home
continued “all through the 80's and 90’s as each summer, we visited and stayed at
Christ Home (sometimes at the Retirement Center other years on the Children’s
side) while visiting [churches & supporters] on the east coast. Christ Home opened
their heart and doors to the Mollers every summer.”
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father
of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our
troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort
we ourselves receive from God.
1 Corinthians 1:3-4
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-- Board of Trustees -Donald P. Worthington - Chairman
June Maurer - Vice Chairwoman
David A. Shoemaker - Treasurer
Brett Griffith – Secretary
Robert D. Feller
Peter J. Gilbert
Bernard J. Lajeunesse
George Zauflik
CEO: Richard F. Smyth
-- Mission Statement -The heart of Christ’s Home is to serve the Lord
by providing services to senior adults and
disadvantaged children in an atmosphere graced
with love, dignity, compassion and respect.
Children’s Campuses
800 North York Road
Warminster, PA 18974
215-956-2260
3182 Lincoln Highway East
Paradise, PA 17562
717-687-6072
www.christshomeforchildren.org
Retirement Community
1220 West Street Road
Warminster, PA 18974
215-956-2270
www.christshome.org
Photos and names may or may not
depict the children of the home.
The Connection is a publication of
the Development Department
Vernon Wright, CDO
Colleen Augustin, Donor Relations Coordinator
-- Donor Choice Program -Christ’s Home is a qualified member of and
participant in the United Way Donor Choice
Program. You may contribute to United Way
through payroll deduction or
by giving an outright gift. Please be sure to ask for a
Donor Choice Form. For the Southeastern PA region
(Delaware Valley only) our number is: 00981.
All other regions must use our
national number: 007689
Christ’s Home is a 501 (c)(3) organization.
Gifts are deductible as charitable contributions
for federal income tax purposes.
The official registration and financial information
of Christ’s Home, Inc. may be obtained from
the Pennsylvania Department of State by calling
toll-free within Pennsylvania, 1-800-732-0999.
(Certificate of Registration No. 13865)
Registration does not imply endorsement.
Championship for Children
We had the opportunity to put the FUN in FUNdraising to work on March 1st, 2013. Six businesses
helped Christ’s Home net $6,500 in contributions to the children’s program by sponsoring race teams in a
corporate challenge event. This event was held at Speed Raceway in Horsham, PA, an indoor electric cart racing
facility that opened in 2012. Each company entered four drivers in this unique team building opportunity. The
qualifying races, semi-finals and championship race had everyone hanging along the rails throughout the three
hour event. The best lap times of the six
drivers in the final were all within 1.3
seconds of each other and the first,
second, and third place finishers were
.143 seconds apart. We congratulate the
winners and thank all the businesses
for their financial contribution, and
investment of time to make the First
Annual Championship for Children
an exciting and successful event. If
your company would be interested
in participating in next year’s event,
contact Colleen Augustin in the
Development Office at 215.956.1885.
Left to Right: Darryl Wolfe – 2nd place;
Don Esh – 1st place; Bo Perez – 3rd place
Sponsored Teams:
DavCo Advertising, LEPCO, Overhead Door of
Lancaster, AlphaSystems, Star Lawnmower, Christ’s
Home (By Scatton’s Heating & Cooling , Zauflik
Motorsports)
Special thanks to Kitchen Kettle Village for the
donation of event prizes.
The DavCo Advertising team
Congratulations to the winning team from
DavCo Advertising - brothers Rick, Don, Jerry and Merle Esh.
One question, who’s watching the store?
Please consider adding Christ’s Home to your will with a specific gift amount or the remainder after other designations
have been fulfilled. Thank you. For further information, contact Vernon Wright at 717-687-9424 (ext 11).
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Alumni Homecoming
Alumni Homecoming on June 8, 2013 WILL BE HERE SOON. Come join
former residents of the Children’s Program, and students of the Christ’s Home
school. Alumni and staff from the Warminster and Paradise campuses are
encouraged to attend this event on the Warminster children’s campus.
The day’s activities will include: •
Registration and Continental Breakfast in the Administration Building
•
Building tours
•
Historic photo albums
•
A delicious hot buffet lunch and Children’s Program update
•
The annual Alumni Association meeting at 3:00PM
The day will begin at 9:00AM with registration and conclude at 4:00PM
Registration is $15 per person and is due on May 28, 2013.
More information can be obtained by contacting:
Colleen Augustin—[email protected] or call 215.956.1885
Vernon Wright—[email protected] or call 717.687.9424 (ext. 11)
REGISTER TODAY!
CEO Interview: Handing off the Baton.........................................................1
The Touch of His Hand: What God Has Accomplished..................1
Driving in Donations..................................................................................................2
Championship for Children....................................................................................5
Inside this Issue
Retirement Community
Children’s Services
Children’s Services
Retirement Community
Established 1903
Established 1903
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