Lambs Farm

Lambs Farm is a non-profit organization near Libertyville, Illinois, that provides vocational and residential services for over 250 adults with developmental disabilities. Located on a 72-acre (290,000 m2) campus,[1] Lambs Farm includes several family attractions, such as a petting zoo, a pet shop, a miniature golf course, several small amusement rides, a restaurant, a thrift shop, a country store and a bakery. Lambs Farm community members work at these attractions, or at a nearby vocational center.[2]

Lambs Farm was formed in the 1960s by Corrine Owen and Robert Terese. Owen and Terese had been teaching at a school for adults with developmental disabilities, and were discouraged by the limited opportunities available to such people. In 1961, they opened a pet store near Chicago's Gold Coast and employed twelve of their students, who enthusiastically helped tend to the animals.[3] Four years later, Owen and Therese acquired a farm near Libertyville with the help of W. Clement Stone and began developing the current Lambs Farm facility.[4] By the late 1980s, Lambs Farm was hosting over 300,000 visitors a year, making it the third most popular attraction in Lake County, Illinois (behind Great America and the Ravinia Festival).[3]

The farm takes its name from John 21:15, in which Jesus tells St. Peter, "Feed my lambs."[5]

Notes
  1. Support. Lambs Farm. Retrieved on April 16, 2013
  2. Tina Kapinos. "Lambs Farm wears a second hat ; Facility also cultivates its destination as family entertainment center". Chicago Tribune. October 23, 2002. Retrieved on April 16, 2013.
  3. Delia O'Hare. "Common ground - Lambs Farm raises quality of life for mentally retarded". Chicago Sun-Times. October 15, 1989. 35. Note, the terms used for description of the differently abled has evolved over time, and this news report used what was standard terminology at the time of its writing.
  4. History. Lambs Farm. Retrieved on April 16, 2013.
  5. Patricia Leeds. "Retarded find haven at Lambs Farm". Chicago Tribune. June 20, 1974. S8. Note, the terms used for description of the differently abled has evolved over time, and this news report used what was standard terminology at the time of its writing.

42°16′44″N 87°54′39″W

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