Our History

Country Acres was established in 1970 by the Brevard County Board of County Commissioners to serve dependent children who have suffered abuse, neglect and/or abandonment. For almost thirty-five years we have continued to provide services for our County's most valuable resources -- our children.

Program Funding

The children's home is primarily funded by the Brevard County Board of County Commissioners and the Florida Department of Children and Families.

The enrichment of the program is achieved through the efforts of the Country Acres Auxiliary, Inc., Many willing local churches, civic and service/corporate organizations and individuals continue to support the ongoing needs of Country Acres children.

Our Mission

Our children attend public school, participate in after-school activities, community events and attend local churches.

We provide a safe nurturing family style home environment for both boys and girls. We continually work with the children individually to teach them how to complete daily self-care tasks, manage their own individual physical, educational, social and spiritual goals.

Our Family Structure

We are a large family. To make it work, we have family customs. Both the parents and the children know what is expected of each other through our Family Living Guide. Natural and logical consequences are used for correcting behavior. Based on our program children earn points to learn responsibility and achieve privileges.

The privileges are age related and focus on teaching each child respect, resourcefulness, responsiveness and responsibility. We have separate living areas for boys and girls. They are involved in keeping their own rooms clean as well as shared areas of the home. They do their own laundry with supervision and have assigned chores.

Activities

All the children have various physical and social activities available. We have bikes, table tennis, basketball, volleyball, tennis and arts and crafts on campus. We also provide opportunities for residents to go swimming, roller skating, fishing, the beach, parks and other social or recreational outings, including YMCA, KSC, Disney field trips and museums.

Therapy Resources

Abuse leaves many scars. Counseling services are provided to our children through several partnership arrangements with Mental Health Agencies. They provide counselors who work with children in group, individual and therapeutic activities to resolve emotional, social and behavioral problems. The therapeutic treatment program goal is to help each child achieve success.

Program Information (pdf)