On October 31, 1867, a boy named Edward from Galesburg was the first to cross the threshold of a newly built orphanage in the town of Berlin, Illinois (now Swedona). Little did young Edward know that his small step was the start of the history and legacy of Lutheran Social Services of Illinois (LSSI) and its service to people and communities across the state.
The orphanage in Berlin was built by concerned Lutherans and community members to address children who lost their parents to a cholera epidemic in western Illinois. In 1871, the children moved to nearby Andover Children’s Home, in Andover, the first Lutheran charitable institution in the state and one of the earliest in the country.
Homes for children orphaned by a cholera epidemic expanded throughout Illinois to help dependent, abused and/or neglected children. Lutherans in Illinois continued to respond to needs in the community. The services branched out from children’s welfare into care for older adults when, in 1906, the Illinois Conference of the Augustana Synod established the Salem Home for the Aged in Joliet.
“Collectively, we have never lost our vision or hope,” said LSSI President and CEO Mark Stutrud, when reflecting on the organization’s history. “LSSI’s mission begins, ‘Responding to the Gospel.’ There is no better foundation for service.”
Dorothy Norberg, 84, a lifelong resident of the town of Andover, can still remember her arrival at Andover Children’s Home. “I got to the home, and they were very good to me, very compassionate and caring,” she recalled. “I had a roof over my head. I had food on the table, and I had clothes.” Norberg was later adopted into what she called a loving home.
Since its founding, strength has come in numbers by combining efforts of the many church-based programs that serve Illinois communities. These mergers eventually led to the formal formation of Illinois Lutheran Welfare Association, which was changed to the current name, Lutheran Social Services of Illinois, in 1979.
LSSI is now one of the largest statewide providers of social services in Illinois and served more than 56,000 people last year across the spectrum of age, race, income, and wellness.
In LSSI’s A History of Service, the Rev. John P. Peterson wrote, “LSSI has a history that sets it apart from other organizations. At the same time, the history binds the current participants in a bond of gratitude and with a challenge to pass on to others that which has been received from the past. There is an understanding that what has been received has been given to be nurtured and enhanced and shaped to fit the needs of the present day.”
The relationship between the private and public sectors has resulted in expanded human services and programing that may not have come about without the support of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), donors, volunteers, and community partners, as well as government support, whether direct or indirect, which have allowed LSSI to build a strong foundation and thrive.
Although much has changed throughout Illinois in the last 158 years, one thing has remained constant in LSSI’s history—the commitment of people in communities to come together to care for their neighbors.
