GAINESVILLE, GA. 9/21/2026 – Wellroot Family Services has received a $300,000 grant from the Melvin Douglas and Victoria Kay Ivester Foundation to establish the Ivester Foundation Stabilization Fund, providing flexible emergency financial assistance to children, youth, and families receiving Wellroot services in Hall County. The fund will help families overcome unexpected challenges before a temporary setback becomes a long-term crisis.
Unlike traditional program funding, the Ivester Foundation Stabilization Fund is designed to address urgent needs that fall outside existing assistance programs. The fund gives Wellroot the flexibility to respond quickly when families encounter unexpected barriers that threaten their stability, helping prevent a short-term challenge from becoming a long-term crisis.
The fund will support children, youth, and families participating in Wellroot programs throughout Hall County, complementing the organization’s work to strengthen families and prevent crises that can lead to child welfare involvement or housing instability.
“Every family can face a moment when a single obstacle threatens to derail their future,” said Swinton Griffith, director of the Melvin Douglas and Victoria Kay Ivester Foundation. “A missed rent payment, a car repair, a utility bill, or another unexpected expense can create a fork in the road that leads either toward greater stability or deeper crisis. The purpose of this fund is to give Wellroot the flexibility to step in during those critical moments and help families stay on the path toward safety, independence, and long-term success. We believe timely support can change the trajectory of a family’s future.”
The grant reflects the Ivester Foundation’s ongoing commitment to strengthening Hall County through strategic investments that improve the quality of life for local residents and expand opportunities for individuals and families. Recent philanthropic support has included investments in arts and cultural organizations that increase access to community resources and experiences.
“Many of the families we serve are working hard to build stable lives, but unexpected challenges can quickly place that progress at risk,” said Allison Ashe, president and CEO of Wellroot Family Services. “This investment allows us to respond immediately when a family needs help most. Whether it is preventing an eviction, covering transportation to work, addressing a utility shutoff, or meeting another urgent need, these resources can help keep families together, prevent deeper system involvement, and create opportunities for long-term stability.”
The grant builds on Wellroot’s growing presence in Hall County, including the recent opening of the Gainesville Family Resiliency Center and the expansion of behavioral health, foster care, and housing for youth experiencing homelessness. By intervening at critical moments, the fund will help families overcome immediate challenges and create pathways to long-term stability, resilience, and success.
About Wellroot Family Services
Wellroot Family Services, formerly The United Methodist Children’s Home, is one of Georgia’s longest-serving child welfare organizations. For 155 years, Wellroot has provided homes for children, teens, young adults, and families. Wellroot’s mission is to restore children and families from trauma. Through the Gainesville Family Resiliency Center, families in Hall County now have local access to the organization’s complete continuum of care:
- Maternal and Infant Health: An affiliate of Healthy Families America®, this evidence-based home visiting program supports expectant and new mothers from pregnancy through a child’s early years. The program provides postpartum screening, developmental resources, and connection to community services, ensuring every baby has a healthy start and every mother has the support she needs.
- Behavioral Health Services: Licensed counseling, trauma-informed therapy, and family resiliency programming, including Functional Family Therapy, help children and families address mental health challenges and build lasting resilience.
- Foster Care and Kinship Care: Wellroot connects children who cannot remain at home with nurturing foster and kinship families, with the goal of reunification whenever possible or adoption into a permanent, loving home.
- Family Advocacy Project (new): A preventive legal advocacy initiative connecting families with attorneys, a social worker, and peer advocates before challenges escalate to possible involvement with DFCS. Participation is voluntary.
- Parenting and Community Resilience Training: Evidence-based programs including Triple P Positive Parenting Program, Reaching Teens, Community Resiliency Model, and Connections Matter equip parents and professionals with tools to prevent trauma and strengthen families.
- Safety Net: Housing and supportive services for young adults ages 18 to 24 experiencing homelessness in Hall, Dawson, and Forsyth counties. The program provides stable housing, case management, and life skills support to help participants achieve long-term stability and self-sufficiency.
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