News

Dr. Monroe Farmer Celebrates 5 Year Work Anniversary at Boys Home

Boys Home staff and students are excited to announce Dr. Monroe Farmer’s five-year work anniversary. He serves as an Ecology and Earth Science teacher at the Boys Home School. Monroe served in the Marine Corps and retired from the Army as a colonel. After his military career, he pursued a career as an optometrist and owned his own practice for thirty years. In addition to his education as an optometrist, he holds a degree in forestry. He came to Boys Home in 2017 to tutor several biology students and was impressed with the Boys Home mission. Monroe felt called to stay.

He states, “My military career has served me well at Boys Home. I know firsthand the importance of young men needing rules, discipline and structure. I have had several of the same students since I arrived in 2017 and watching them succeed over the last five years has given me great joy. I believe in the Boys Home program.” As a teacher and a mentor, Monroe helps to uphold the Boys Home values of respect, integrity, a Godly life and accountability. These values help to develop and strengthen the students the program serves daily. Congratulations, Monroe!

Susie Keller Celebrates 5 Year Work Anniversary at Boys Home

Boys Home staff and students are excited to announce Lorraine “Susie” Keller’s five-year work anniversary. She serves as a full-time teacher and student testing coordinator. Susie is passionate about education and has worked in the field for many years. Prior to Boys Home, she worked in the Alleghany County Public School System for over twenty-five years. Susie was asked about what motivated her to choose education as a career path. She stated, “In 7^th grade, my teacher Mrs. Diane Laws, inspired me to want to be an educator. She was my mentor, role model and someone I admired. I saw that she changed the lives of her students, built individual bonds and gave them every opportunity to learn.”

Susie was also asked what she enjoys most about her current position. She stated, “I have built a great rapport with my students. We may not agree on everything, but we respect each other’s opinions. My philosophy for my classroom is ‘we are all in this together and we will succeed together.’ I am thankful for the opportunity to work with such a supportive administrator, great co-workers and an excellent work environment at the Boys Home School. I am excited to see how much we will learn together as the school year continues.” Susie is known for her outgoing personality and bright smile around the Boys Home community. She helps to live the Boys Home vision of a community that inspires young men to positively impact those around them. Congratulations, Susie!

Boys Home Receives Donation from Mountain View Elementary School

Boys Home students pose with Library Media Teacher Darilyn McGraw from Mountain View Elementary School.

Boys Home has received over 3,000 books, games, posters and educational resources from Mountain View Elementary School. At the beginning of each school year, teachers sort through materials from the previous year. Items they are not using often get stored in the school’s library. Library Media Teacher Darilyn McGraw wanted to make sure the items were used to benefit other children. The school already had a connection to Boys Home through Mr. Howard Nicely, the school’s gym teacher. His wife, Renada Nicely, is a driving instructor at Boys Home.

Darilyn stated, “The principals and I discussed ways to save the books and other items from being put in storage or discarded. What better way to reutilize the books and items than by giving them to another school in our community? I am delighted that our donation will help more students be successful!” Boys Home is grateful for the donation and looks forward to finding a use for the items with the students we serve daily. Mountain View Elementary School matches the vision of Boys Home, and that is to be a community that positively impacts those around them. Thank you, Mountain View Elementary School, for your kindness to the students at Boys Home of Virginia. 

Boys Home is on TV! Boys Home Playground Project 2023

The current playground at Boys Home was installed in 1958, and leaders there are hoping for an upgrade.

Chris Doyle, Executive Director of the Boys Home of Virginia, along with Laura Robertson from the Development Department, joins us on Here @ Home to talk about the necessary upgrades and why they’re important.

The current structure has one slide and two swings. Boys Home typically has 40-60 students who live on campus full-time. Many of the students suffered trauma and adversity before arriving. An expanded playground would have benefits to the student population. Donations to build a new playground can be online at boyshomeofva.org; click on the “Donate” button with Paypal – add “Playground Project” in the special instructions for donations.