Like many people, LeRoy Haynes, an immigrant from Kansas and graduate of University of Southern California, wondered how to make his world a better place. But unlike many people, LeRoy Haynes (or Uncle LeRoy, as he came to be known) did something about it.
While working as a chaplain for an institutionalized reform school in Whittier, he realized that many troubled boys could be better helped with earlier intervention and treatment in a home-like environment. Acting on this belief, Uncle LeRoy and his wife Jeanne poured their life savings into an estate in LaVerne. In October of 1946, LeRoy Boys Home opened with ten residents.

Demand soon outstripped capacity of the small facilities on campus and a steady pattern of physical and ideological growth began which continues to this day. The original group home program was modified to meet changing needs and has evolved into the Residential Treatment Program in place today.

Today, the LaVerne campus encompasses 18 buildings, including 6 residential cottages, situated on 24 acres of land nestled against the foothills of the east San Gabriel Valley. By 1994, it became apparent that the name “LeRoy Boys Home” did not accurately reflect the array of services offered, and thus an “umbrella” name was added:

LeRoy Haynes Center for Children and Family Services. The Center is proud to have touched the lives of many abused, abandoned and neglected children, and plans to continue to do so for many years to come. Helping Children One Family at a Time!