Lifelink, Hoyleton Dissolve Affiliation

Lifelink President and CEO Rev. Timothy Rhodes and Hoyleton Youth and Family Services President and CEO Christopher L. Cox announced Aug. 20 the dissolution of the 11-year affiliation of their respective organizations.

Hoyleton Youth and Family Services and its affiliates, Puentes de Esperanza and Hoyleton Children’s Home Foundation, now operate as independent nonprofit, faith-based entities.

Lifelink, located in Bensenville, Ill., and Hoyleton Youth and Family Services (HYFS), located in Hoyleton, Ill., were both founded as homes for children in 1895 as separate ministries of the German Evangelical Church, a forerunner of today’s United Church of Christ. The two organizations began their affiliation in July 1999 in a move that strengthened both organizations financially and operationally.

Lifelink is taking the strategic step of divesting some of its programs, including Hoyleton, to focus on providing affordable housing services in Illinois, Missouri and Florida. This will strengthen Lifelink and allow it to expand its housing services to meet the tremendous need for those programs.

As a result of this disaffiliation, Cox has been appointed the president and CEO of HYFS and its affiliates. “We are excited to have the opportunity to continue our legacy of providing for the needs of children and families in Southwestern Illinois, and look forward to serving them for many years to come,” Cox said.

Hoyleton Children’s Home remains at the core of HYFS’s services. From its beginnings as an orphanage, the home has evolved into a residential treatment facility for youths experiencing developmental disabilities and exhibiting behavioral disorders. Hoyleton’s other services include: Foster Care, the Seeds of Success Family Advocacy program, Transitional Housing and Life Skills Training for homeless families, Community Integrated Living Arrangements, Counseling, and Project Safe Date.

As an HYFS affiliate, Puentes de Esperanza serves a growing Hispanic community in Southwestern Illinois, with services that include Outreach and Advocacy, Head Start for Migrant and Seasonal families, Domestic Violence Prevention, its Women’s Health Initiative, and its Teen REACH after-school program. The Hoyleton Children’s Home Foundation exists to develop the resources needed to support and further the ministries of Hoyleton Youth and Family Services and Puentes de Esperanza.

“Lifelink is honored to have served jointly with Hoyleton for eleven years and knows Hoyleton is well  positioned to continue its 115-year history of ministry serving vulnerable children and families,” Rhodes said.

For more information on Lifelink’s affordable housing programs, contact Lifelink at 630-766-3570.

For more information on Hoyleton’s ministries, contact Hoyleton at 618-493-7382.