Riverview Estates

It was the vision of Miss Mary Leverich which became reality in Riverview Estates, the Baptist Home of South Jersey. On August 17, 1951 it was learned that the greater part of her estate, acquired from a successful business career, would be dedicated to establishing a Baptist Home in South Jersey. On February 25, 1952 representatives of the churches of the Camden Association of American Baptist Churches of New Jersey met at Central Baptist Church, Palmyra to begin the process of bringing the Home into being.

Various properties were investigated with the present location being purchased for the sum of $37,500. This included the Victorian house, carriage house and an additional lot for expansion.

Discussion about forming a Women's Auxiliary started on September 3, 1953. The organizational meeting of 75 women happened in November 1953. They have helped us out of many tight spots through their efforts.

It was decided that the Superintendent of the Home needed to be an ordained Baptist minister. The Rev. S. Dan Morgan became the first Superintendent of "The Baptist Home of South jersey". Subsequent leaders were the Reverends John B. Peterson, George E. Heggan, Edward A. Elliott, Charles Jackson and Donald Taylor.

Authorization to operate the Home was received from the State of New Jersey October 1, 1953. The doors opened for ministry March 10, 1954 with the arrival of the cook. The service of dedication took place at 2:30 p.m., Saturday, October 2, 1954.

The first expansion of the facility was the addition of the 25 x 35 foot Infirmary (Riverview Wing) at a cost of $25,000 in 1956. In 1958 plans were made for a $350,000 expansion. The new kitchen and dining room were started in 1971. Additional construction took place in 1972 through 1975. However, not until 1987 would groundbreaking occur for the final piece of our current facility-the three story wing known as the Elliott Wing (or E-Wing).

The major change in the operation of the Home came with the installation of Mr. Charles Kittle in 1992. He was the first non-clergy administrator of the Home. Early in his tenure policy changes resulted in the admission of non-American Baptist residents and in the use of "Riverview Estates" in public relations. A few years later the Riverview Estates Foundation was established to bring about financial stability.

The first female administrator/CEO, Ms. Janice B. Doughman, was installed in May 2002. Her influence has already been felt and she will be leading us into the future.

In 2002 the trustees created an umbrella organization for Riverview Estates and any other health care operations that may come in the future. It is called "The Baptist Homes of New Jersey, Inc." Mr. Kittle was selected to be its first President/CEO.

While we may not know what the future holds, we know who holds the future. With the Lord's help we have come this far and with the Lord's help we will have another 50 years of service to the Seniors of the South Jersey area.