Founded in 1903, Klingberg Family Centers is a private, nonprofit multi-service agency providing help to hundreds of persons across Connecticut each year. Our mission is to extend hope and healing to children and families whose

lives have been affected by abuse in its various forms, severe family problems and various emotional, developmental and behavioral difficulties. Through an array of residential, special education, foster care and community programs, children and parents are given the encouragement and skills they need to function more effectively at home, in school and in their community. Our main campus is located in New Britain, Connecticut. We also offer a wide range of community services from offices in Hartford, and downtown New Britain.

Our Mission

To help build healing relationships that empower children and families to reach their full potential.

Beliefs and Aspirations

Klingberg Family Centers believes that each child is precious and deserving of a safe, caring home. We are also dedicated to the belief that “the family” is the best place for youngsters to live, learn and grow. These beliefs motivate our efforts to strengthen, equip and restore families, whenever possible, so that each child may receive the enduring love and guidance they need.

Klingberg Family Centers desires to build on the wonderful foundations we have inherited, affirming the best of the traditions given us and striving to close the gaps between principles and practices.

Klingberg Family Centers aspires to be an organization that engenders the pride and the commitment of our Board of Trustees, staff, volunteers, our community and constituency and the children and families we serve. We seek to create an environment where individuals are given the opportunity to contribute, learn and grow and where they feel respected, treated fairly, listened to and included. We strive to accomplish these goals in an atmosphere of interdependence, teamwork, good humor, love and encouragement.

Programs and Services

• Child Abuse Treatment Services (CATS)
• Extended Day Treatment
• Family Enrichment Services (FES)
• Family Visitation Services & Parent/Caregiver Groups
• Group Homes
• Intensive Family Preservation (IFP)
• One-on-One Mentoring Program
• Outpatient Clinic
• Raymond Hill School
• Residential Treatment Center »
• Respite Care
• Specialized Foster Care & Adoption
• Traumatic Stress Institute
• Webster House

Klingberg Family Centers Licensure, Memberships and Accreditations

Licensure and Approvals:

• Connecticut Department of Children and Families
• Connecticut State Department of Education

Memberships:

• National Association for Children’s Behavioral Health (NACBH)
• New England Network for Child, Youth, and Family Services (NEN)
• Children’s League of Connecticut (CLOC)
• Connecticut Association of Special Education Facilities (CAPSEF)
• Connecticut Community Providers Association (CCPA)
• Black Administrators in Child Welfare (BACW)
• The National Council
• National Association of Private Special Education Centers (NAPSEC)
• New Britain (Connecticut) Chamber of Commerce
• Metro Hartford (Connecticut) Alliance

Accreditations:
Klingberg Family Centers proudly maintains accreditation by the National Commission for the Accreditation of Special Education Services (NCASES) and by the Joint Commission (formerly Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations). Concerns about client care and safety at Klingberg Family Centers that cannot be resolved by the organization may be directed to the Joint Commission.

Our History & Heritage
John Eric Klingberg learned the hard lessons that poverty teaches as a small boy growing up in Sweden in the late 1800s. Although destitute as a child, years later in his memoirs he would recall with amazing clarity those individuals, authors and circumstances which enriched and cultivated his spirit into fertile ground where dreams could grow.

In 1903, he was pastor to a poor, small congregation in New Britain, Connecticut when opportunity knocked upon the door of his humble abode. His faith in God and his aspiration to one day do something for “boys and girls in needy circumstances” was put to the test when three young boys, found abandoned and living in a shack, needed a home. The dream took root and blossomed across the decades as nearly 2000 children – orphaned, abandoned or whose families were unable to care for them – took up residence in what became the Klingberg Children’s Home.

By 1968, the torch had been handed over to Rev. Klingberg’s grandson, Haddon Klingberg, Jr. Ph.D., whose father, Haddon, Sr., had directed the Children’s Home for the previous 22 years. Changes in the care of orphaned and needy children nationwide prompted a shift from being a “substitute home” to providing treatment services for children and their families. The Children’s Home became Klingberg Family Centers, Inc., a private, nonprofit organization whose goal is to strengthen families, to reunite children and families whenever that is safe and possible, and to assure permanent, nurturing families for children. Today, Klingberg Family Centers provides services to hundreds of persons each year through a range of programs which include residential treatment, a special education school, an acute care unit, extended day treatment, family preservation and reunification services, a parent aide program, respite care for families, a safe home and a specialized foster care and adoption program.

Welcome "Home-Kids"

Between 1903 and 1970, more than 2,000 children lived at the “Klingberg Children’s Home,” as it was then called. Klingberg Family Centers continues to welcome calls or visits from former residents. Many alumni still refer to themselves as “Home-kids,” and appreciate opportunities to reminisce memories – both sweet and sad – with others who shared similar experiences. A number of childhood friends have been reunited through their contacts with Klingberg Family Centers. Over the past ten years, Klingberg Family Centers has hosted several alumni reunions for just that purpose. People enjoy showing their children and grandchildren a piece of their past and often spend hours looking through old photographs and memorabilia.

If you, a family member or friend lived at the Klingberg Children’s Home and would like to stop by for a visit or are interested in upcoming reunions, please write or call:

markj@klingberg.org
370 Linwood St.
New Britain, CT 06052

or call (860) 224-9113.