Big Oak Ranch: Difference between revisions
(Created page with "The '''Big Oak Ranch''' is a privately-operated Christian non-profit which provides a foster home for children on a 474-acre site in northern Calhoun County, near Gadsde...") |
No edit summary |
||
| Line 15: | Line 15: | ||
[[Category:Nonprofits]] | [[Category:Nonprofits]] | ||
[[Category: | [[Category:Ministries]] | ||
[[Category:1974 establishments]] | [[Category:1974 establishments]] | ||
Revision as of 13:09, 23 November 2022
The Big Oak Ranch is a privately-operated Christian non-profit which provides a foster home for children on a 474-acre site in northern Calhoun County, near Gadsden. It is currently headed by president and CEO Brodie Croyle.
The program was founded in 1974 by Brodie's father John Croyle as a boys' ranch. A separate girls' ranch opened in 1988 in northern St Clair County. The nearly 200 is organized into "homes" of up to eight children, each supervised by a pair of foster parents. Individual residents spend one weekend a month with a "resource family" away from the ranch, giving the houseparents a weekend off.
School-age children attend classes at Westbrook Christian School in Rainbow City, which was acquired by Big Oak Ranch in 1990. After high school, residents are able to participate in the "Ascend" program which supports them through college or trade school and into career placement.
The ranch has 225 acres of pasture land and has been raising its own beef cattle since 2014.
References
- Kassim, Ehsan (April 20, 2022) "'A pretty surreal day': Westbrook Christian breaks ground for new athletic facility." The Gadsden Times
- Swain, Sharron (November 23, 2022) "Big Oak Ranch has been giving kids in Alabama a new life for almost 50 years." Bham Now
External links
- Big Oak Ranch website