About Us
Since 1949, more than 500 children have called Henry & Evans “home”.
At Henry & Evans Home For Children, we’ve spent over 75 years helping children and teens visualize and pursue their goals in a safe and nurturing environment.
We have three main values that we center our work around:
Children have the right to have their basic needs met.
Children have the right to be protected from harm.
Children have the right to dream.
A History Of The Evans Home
The Henry and William Evans Home has a very intriguing backstory! A Winchester resident for almost a century, Mrs. Molly Evans Janney advocated for a strong, supportive community.
Upon her death, she instructed her niece, Lillian Evans Sheetz, to establish a Home for abused and needy children. This Home was to be named after her father, Henry, and her uncle, William.
As wealthy property owners, the brothers owned a beautiful Victorian home on North Loudon Street, among other plots of land. As a tribute to the Home’s namesake, The Henry and Evan Williams Home was first established in this historic home in 1949. According to local folklore, the brothers buried some of their fortune beneath the house.
However, the aging three story Victorian home was naturally not convenient for running a Children’s Home.
In 1977, Evans Home eventually found a new location to better serve their needs. The land was sold to a large company who demolished the home to build a department store, and more recently, a parking garage. If the story about the brothers’ fortune is true, it has never been found.
Despite a colorful foundation story, the Henry and William Evans Home has been a trusted pillar in the Winchester community for more than 75 years and is more focused on the future than the past.
We are proud of our alumni, who are now respected and strong members of the community, and are confident in our current and future residents’ success and happiness.
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Former Evans Home resident Linda S. with a photo taken Christmas,1953 of residents with the gifts they received. (Winchester Star)
“That was the first time in memory I could remember feeling safe, that somebody actually did care.”
“I want you to picture being 5 [years old] to whatever,” Murphy said. “I want you to think about the only aspect of love you’ve gotten used to is that right punch to the eye.
“Nobody in this world gives a damn about you, and that’s your life. You fight, you claw, you bite for anything and everything because you have nothing, and in your heart you have no one.”
But he vividly remembers when former Evans Home director Kirby Lloyd took him in his arms and hugged him for the first time.
“That was the first time in memory I could remember feeling safe, that somebody actually did care,” Murphy said, tearing up. “And it wasn’t just words, it wasn’t just a mouthpiece. Somebody cared. That’s what the Evans Home is.”
Our dedicated staff is our best resource and we could not do the amazing work we do without their hard work. At Evans Home, we are truly a home and treat each other as family.
The best part of our jobs is the connections we make with our residents and we love to see them succeed. We are deeply honored to regularly receive invitations to graduations, weddings, and baby showers, and appreciate any opportunity to celebrate our residents.
Evans Home Staff
Amy Rice (She/Her) - Executive Director
Amy Rice joined the Evans Home in the fall of 2021. Amy is a graduate of Kenyon College, and comes to the Evans Home from the Metro Washington DC area where she has lived and worked for more than 25 years. Amy has a long history of working in Residential Programs including programs for runaway, homeless and at-risk youth, homeless families, and pregnant and parenting youth. Amy also enjoys gardening, hiking local trails with her children, listening to a wide variety of music, and baking. You can reach Amy at Amy.Rice@evanshome.org
LaMisha Allen (She/Her) - Program Director
LaMishia joined the Evans Home as the new Program Director in July of 2015. She earned her Masters of Social Work from Radford University (Go Highlanders!) and was immediately hired after graduation by a local Department of Social Services as a Family Services Specialist where she managed a successful career serving foster children and their families for 14 years. She is a multi-passionate individual having interests in paranormal fiction, Fantasy BookTok Cosplaying, both novel reading & writing, photography and anything arts/craft related. It is her personal belief that a diverse life experience can be an invaluable asset to her position as Program Director. You can reach out to LaMisha at LaMishia.Allen@evanshome.org
Izzy Brenner (She/Her) - Administrative Assistant
Izzy joined us in late 2013 with over 16 years of nonprofit experience in both a trade association and charity. She manages the Evans Home administrative offices and is very excited about her recent expansion into Relief House parenting for the Evans Home! Izzy lives with her two sons and her dog Hank in Shenandoah County. She loves a good murder mystery, dystopian fiction, comedy, or otherworldly T.V. series. Her free time is spent dreaming up new home renovations and trying the newest Tik Tok cooking recipes. You can reach out to Izzy at Izzy.Brenner@evanshome.org
Evans Home Board Of Directors
Our Board of Directors is composed of up to 16 volunteer members representing the surrounding Winchester community. The Board meets monthly and is responsible for fundraising, public information, and policy review. We are grateful for our Board member’s leadership and guidance as we continue our mission.
Current Board
Jessica D. White (Chairperson)
Robin Cardillo (Vice-Chairperson)
Ridge White (Secretary/Treasurer)
Don Comer
Josh Huff
Dan Martin
Craig Morcom
Ben Savory
Cheryl Thompson-Stacy
Ann Wallinger
Elizabeth Minor (Honorary Lifetime Board Member)
Annual Reports
Please check back soon.