160+ Years of Serving Families in Central Illinois

From our beginnings in 1863 to today, Family Service Center has stood beside children, parents, and our community with licensed, compassionate care.

160+ Years of Serving Families in Central Illinois

From our beginnings in 1863 to today, Family Service Center has stood beside children, parents, and our community with licensed, compassionate care.

About Family Service Center

Family Service Center is a licensed nonprofit social-service agency based in Springfield, Illinois. Guided by a volunteer Board of Directors, we provide adoption and foster care services along with family support that strengthens the well-being of children and caregivers across Central Illinois.

Founded in 1863, FSC grew from the unification of historic local charities devoted to child welfare and family stability. Today, our mission is sustained through service fees, government contracts, and community partners such as the United Way of Central Illinois, operating with an annual budget of about three million dollars so we can keep showing up for families who need us.

Our History

For more than a century and a half, Springfield’s charitable spirit has shaped FSC into a single, community-rooted agency focused on children and families.

1863

Home for the Friendless incorporates in Springfield to aid destitute women and children during the Civil War era.

1888 - 1924

Associated Charities forms to coordinate aid, later becoming the Family Welfare Association with a focus on family rehabilitation.

1928 - 1930

Children’s Service League emerges; Springfield Day Nursery joins to support working families; emphasis shifts toward foster home programs.

1953 - 1959

Key mergers create Child and Family Service of Sangamon County; the Colored Children’s Service Bureau joins the unified agency.

1974 - Today

Renamed Family Service Center of Sangamon County; today we continue serving families from 919 South Spring Street in Springfield, Illinois.

Our Mission

Family Service Center is committed to improving the lives in Central Illinois through foster care, adoption, and counseling services.

Ready to open your home and heart to a child today?

Ready to open your home and heart to a child today?

Family Service Center strengthens families across Central Illinois through compassionate foster care, adoption, and counseling.

© Family Service Center. 2025 | All Rights Reserved | Privacy Policy