The History of Grampy's House

Grampy's House is the initiative of Ms. Sharon Rice who recognized the need in the community for a visitation/exchange center of divorced parents.  Grampy's House is modeled after 23 existing exchange centers in operation in the state of Ohio.  Initial investigation into the possibilty of starting a program in Allen County took place in August of 2000.  The board of directors for Grampy's House was formed in October of 2000, and incorporated in April of 2001.  Shawnee Presbyterian Church incubated the program in its infancy and the Market Street Presbyterian Church is providing the house and financial support for the program as part of their mission commitment to the community.  Located at 1132 W. Market St., Grampy's House will serve families from Allen County and surrounding areas.  Grampy's House is a memeber of the National Supervised Visitation Network and the Ohio Childrens Assess Visitation Coalition.  The 501(C)(3) tax exempt has been issued to Grampy's House by the United States Internal Revenue Service.

The house that has been donated to Grampy's House has been renovated by the A Co, 983d ENGER BN (C)(H) Army Reserve Unit based on Reed Rd. in Shawnee Twsp. as part of their community involvement program.  The unit worked in the house the weekend of January 5th and 6th, and returned to work again on Feb. 2nd and 3rd, 2002.  The materials needed for the renovations had been donated by area businesses.

Start-up funding:

Funding to support the program came from private donations, mission donations from area churches, donations from area service clubs, grant applications, and fees from parents, as well as fundraising activities.

Future Funding:

The board of directors have contacted all churches in the Allen County area to come together to support the children of our community. Grampy's House will request donations from private individuals, area corporations, as well as contributions from all area church mission funds. Additional funds are possible from the court system and social agencies, parental fees and fundraisers.