Boys Village was founded in 1947 by members of the Lake Charles Optimist Club.
Walter Phillips, a man well known in the Lake Charles community in the late 1940’s, joined a newly organized civic group called “The Downtown Optimist Club of Lake Charles”. The club was considering forming a home for locally underprivileged boys. Mr. Phillips played an integral part in making Boys Village a reality.
The original location was Chennault Air Base in Lake Charles. In 1951 the Bel Estate donated buildings that would be disassembled and then reassembled at its new site (located at 7378 Highway 90 East in Lake Charles) where they still stand and are currently being used. This forty acre campus allowed us, over time, to build a wonderful recreational complex including a gymnasium, swimming pool, running track, baseball and football fields, and tennis and volleyball courts for the children. Through the years as the needs of children and society changed so did the services we provided. Mr. Walter Phillips died in 1989; however the Lake Charles Optimist Club continues to support the Village.
Today, the Village has evolved into a treatment program, touching the lives of children who are in critical trouble or have been abused and neglected.
A holistic approach is taken through a team of highly devoted staff and clinicians that each has a unique expertise including psychologists, social workers, mental health counselors, direct care staff and more. Combining tenderness of care with effective programs, which equip children with the necessary life tools to become healthy productive individuals, we can effectively take a child through stabilization and reintegration into the community. More than seventy years after our humble beginnings, Boys Village continues to serve more than 100 of our most needy children each year.
Moved to its present location in 1951
Buildings donated by the Bel Estate:
Three small cottages, kitchen, maintenance building, big house and staff living quarters.
- 1964 Joy Cottage was built
- 1971 Peace Cottage was built
- 1982 Swimming Pool was added
- 1986 On-Campus School Program started with the help of Barbara Bankens
BESE Board Approved - 1986 Girl Village was opened (Faith Cottage in Sulphur)
- 1991 the (CVA) Crime Victim’s Assistance Program began covering the five Parish area
- 1991 Family Pavilion was built
- 1994 The new on-campus school was built with the help of PPG Friends.
Campus Renovations:
- 1993 Optimist Drive – Lake Charles Optimist Club
- 1994 G.A. McElveen Drive – Wayne and Andy McElveen
- 1996 James T. Austin Gym – Carl and Vickie Warden (beginning seed money and education)
- 1993-1996 All cottages remodeled
- 1997 New Food Distribution Center completed
- 1998 Hope Cottage was built
- 2001 Faith Cottage Sold
- 2012 the (CVA) Program Stopped