Family Services (formerly LDS Family Services) is a private

nonprofit corporation A nonprofit corporation is any legal entity which has been incorporated under the law of its jurisdiction for purposes other than making profits for its owners or shareholders. Depending on the laws of the jurisdiction, a nonprofit corporation ma ...

owned and operated by

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Restorationism, restorationist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, denomination and the ...

. It offers members of the church and others marital and family counseling,

addiction Addiction is a neuropsychological disorder characterized by a persistent and intense urge to use a drug or engage in a behavior that produces natural reward, despite substantial harm and other negative consequences. Repetitive drug use can ...

and

drug A drug is any chemical substance other than a nutrient or an essential dietary ingredient, which, when administered to a living organism, produces a biological effect. Consumption of drugs can be via insufflation (medicine), inhalation, drug i ...

dependency counseling, general

psychotherapy Psychotherapy (also psychological therapy, talk therapy, or talking therapy) is the use of Psychology, psychological methods, particularly when based on regular Conversation, personal interaction, to help a person change behavior, increase hap ...

, counseling, and other services to women or girls experiencing

unintended pregnancy Unintended pregnancies are pregnancies that are mistimed or unwanted at the time of conception, also known as unplanned pregnancies. Sexual activity without the use of effective contraception through choice or coercion is the predominant caus ...

. In addition to individual counseling, classes are offered on strengthening marriage and families, along with the Addiction Recovery Program, which is based on the 12-step model and Christian values.

History

In 1919, the organization was created as the Relief Society Social Service Department (RSSSD) by Amy B. Lyman, an official in the church's

Relief Society The Relief Society is a philanthropic and educational women's organization of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). It was founded in 1842 in Nauvoo, Illinois, United States, and has more than 7 million members in over 1 ...

organization. In 1969, the organization was renamed Unified Social Services (USS) and separated from the Relief Society. In 1973, the organization became a corporation separate from the church and was renamed LDS Social Services; in 1995, the name was changed to LDS Family Services. In 2019, the name was changed to Family Services. Until 1934, the program only had professional staff in Salt Lake City. In that year additional offices were opened in

Ogden, Utah Ogden ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Weber County, Utah, Weber County, Utah, United States, approximately east of the Great Salt Lake and north of Salt Lake City. The population was 87,321 in 2020, according to the United States Census ...

and

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. Starting in 1957 the Indian Placement Program was placed under the auspices of the RSSSD. In 1962, a branch office was opened in

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona. With over 1.6 million residents at the 2020 census, it is the ...

, with another opened in

Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

in 1965. When the program was removed from being under the direction of the Relief Society and USS was created in 1969, Marvin J. Ashton was appointed as managing director. The USS oversight committee consisted of Marion G. Romney as chair, with Spencer W. Kimball,

Thomas S. Monson Thomas Spencer Monson (August 21, 1927 – January 2, 2018) was an American religious leader, author, and the 16th president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). As president, he was considered by adherents of the rel ...

, John Vandenbergh (the church's presiding bishop), and Belle S. Spafford as members. In 1971, when Ashton became a member of the

Quorum of the Twelve In the Latter Day Saint movement, the Quorum of the Twelve (also known as the Council of the Twelve, the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Council of the Twelve Apostles, or the Twelve) is one of the governing bodies (or quorums) of the church hie ...

he was replaced by Victor L. Brown. As of 2019, Family Services has 85 offices in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

Korea Korea is a peninsular region in East Asia consisting of the Korean Peninsula, Jeju Island, and smaller islands. Since the end of World War II in 1945, it has been politically Division of Korea, divided at or near the 38th parallel north, 3 ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

Tonga Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania. The country has 171 islands, of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in the southern Pacific Ocean. accordin ...

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and several other south and central American countries. Staff must have a minimum of a master's degree in behavioral sciences.

Adoption services discontinued

For decades, Family Services had been one of the largest private nonprofit adoption agencies in the world. However, in June 2014, the agency announced that it would no longer operate a full-scale adoption agency. Instead, Family Services planned to shift all of its adoption-related resources to counseling for birth parents and prospective adoptive parents and partner with local agencies for services it no longer provided. According to the ''

Deseret News The ''Deseret News'' () is a multi-platform newspaper based in Salt Lake City, published by Deseret News Publishing Company, a subsidiary of Deseret Management Corporation, which is owned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS ...

'', the agency cited changes in adoption trends such as the reduction in children available for adoption. Family Services has been the subject of lawsuits about fathers' rights in some adoption cases, and other religious-based adoption agencies are under pressure to facilitate adoptions for same-sex couples. But the organization said that none of these issues influenced its decision.

References

*C. Ross Clement (1992)
"Social Services"
in ''

Encyclopedia of Mormonism The ''Encyclopedia of Mormonism'' is a semi-official English-language encyclopedia for topics relevant to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church, see also "Mormon"). The encyclopedia's five volumes have been digitized and ar ...

'' (New York: Macmillan) p. 1386–1387. *''Encyclopedia of Latter-Day Saint History'', p. 1157.

External links

Family Services
: official webpage
Addiction Recovery Program
: Addiction Recovery Program (ARP) meetings webpage {{Authority control Adoption-related organizations Community and social services occupations Organizational subdivisions of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Relief Society Social work organizations Organizations established in 1919 1919 establishments in the United States