Stories From 6881 Beechmont Avenue
In 1948, the German General Protestant Orphan Home purchased a 60-acre farm on the boundary of Mt. Washington and Anderson Township, a beautiful rural setting amid stately beech trees, where the children had been accustomed to camp for a few weeks each summer. Board Chair Everett Townsley donated one-third of the purchase price for the new location, which came to be called Beech Acres. There were six cottages housing 10 to 12 children each and a handsome administration building arranged around a grassy circular lawn. After a century on Burnet Avenue, in 1949 the Home moved to Anderson Township and evolved into the Beech Acres Parenting Center of today. But our driving force has remained the same from the start – to help children grow into capable, contributing, and caring adults. We are excited about the move to a new centrally located headquarters site, located in Cincinnati and perfect for fulfilling today’s mission and meeting the needs of our community now and in the future. Please join us in celebrating and cherishing the impact made at 6881 Beechmont Avenue over the past 73 years. We’ve had several people reach out with stories, memories, and recollections of our Anderson Township campus. We will be collecting and sharing those stories here. “My first job when I graduated from Miami University in 1978 was working in the PR & Development Office as the Feast Assistant. My job was to assist with duties related to the Annual Feast. I never realized how much work went into this one-day event until I worked there. After the Feast in 1978, I stayed on and took on the newly created position of PR & Development Assistant. I was in that position until June 1982. I enjoyed those four years working with all the wonderful people on such a beautiful campus.” – Sue Roeding Lanter “One of my favorite Beechmont memories was during my first year here at the Beech. I was teaching foster parent pre-service training one fall evening and noticed that all of the training participants facing the window were quite distracted. I gave the class a break and learned that the distraction was two bucks challenging one another at the flagpole in the center of the circle. It was as if the deer planned to meet at the flagpole and settle a dispute. The whole class took a break to watch for a few minutes. This memory stayed with me as one of the things I appreciate the most about 6881 Beechmont- appreciating the beauty and the ability to share the space with the wildlife that call the surrounding trees home.” – Jessica Thompson, LISW-S “I am the daughter of two residents of General Protestant Orphan Home (Edna Liebert, 1936-1946) and Jack Whitt (1938-1946). My mother was one of 7 children (per GPOH, the largest family to ever reside at “The Home”), and my father was one of 3 boys, so that’s my parents and 8 aunts and uncles who shared their stories with their wide-eyed daughter/niece! They all had a father, but their mothers had died, which necessitated their entrance into “The Home.” I grew up listening to stories of “The Home”. They were a big family who knew each other well! My memories include remarkable stories: – my Dad always watching out for his youngest brother, who was 6 months old when they entered “The Home.”– my Mom and her sisters learning about “female hygiene” from the matrons.– my Dad and my Uncle playing duets (Dad was on trombone, my Uncle played trumpet) at special events, and especially playing Taps at funerals (Uncle Nelson would play the melody, Dad would play the echo).– my Dad telling the story of how he proposed to my Mom while sitting on a stairway at “The Home.” Dad always said that “The Home” was the best thing that could have happened to him, given that his mom had died and they were in The Great Depression. He so appreciated the structure and support he received as he grew up. I grew up attending “The Feast” every year. While Mom & Dad would spend time with many of the other “orphans,” we kids were allowed to ride rides and bet at the various booths. We always came home with baskets of food that many of us would win. I could go on. My childhood memories are flooded with stories. I just hope I have been able to share a bit of what the history of Beech Acres/GPOH has meant to me. I guess coming full circle is that, although my parents are now gone, they certainly must be so proud of the fact that their granddaughter, my daughter, is now on the Board of Beech Acres. I look forward to the lovely tribute coming up as you move on to a new location.” – Denice Whitt Yosafat “My husband, BJ and I started our Foster Care journey right here on the Beechmont campus in 2016. On June 7th, 2016 we finished all requirements to become licensed and took our photo in front of the Kilgore building. We were filled with desire to make a difference in the lives of children and their families, and a hope to grow our family. Over the next few years, we opened our hearts and home to many children. We are now blessed with 5 children! Fast forward to this year… I stood in the green space in front of the Admin building with many of you, admiring my beautiful daughters Mariah and Aubree for their courage. Our daughter’s chose to share their foster care and adoption story to bring light to the need for foster families in our community. By doing so, they raised $5000 for our Foster Care and Adoption program through their “Flip for Foster care” fundraiser! My favorite part of the story, is that they delivered the check on June 7th, 2022 exactly 6 years from the date we finished our Foster Care classes. For their bravery, I joined my talented
