Our History
How it all started…
Lily’s Place began in 2014 as the nation’s first Neonatal Abstinence Center. The founders – Rhonda Edmunds, Sara Murray, and Mary Calhoun Brown – were working and volunteering in the hospital’s NICU, and looked for ways to better serve the increasing number of infants born with NAS. With research, planning, prayer and support, the three opened the nation’s first NAS center.
Lily’s Place saw the benefit of private rooms with a quiet atmosphere and dim lighting, which are best for babies born with NAS, as they are often sensitive to light and sound. We provided individual nurseries, a low staff-to-patient ratio, and rooming-in by parents.
We focused on helping infants through the withdrawal process then saw an opportunity to expand our care and fulfill our mission of creating healthier families.
Where We Are Now…
We have since enlarged the circle we serve by expanding to include behavioral health and prevention services. In 2020 Lily’s Place added a second location, the Family Center. There we offer counseling, peer recovery support, case management and groups to the community. Our third location, the Children’s Center, opened in 2023 and provides counseling, case management, prevention services, mentorship, outreach activities and groups to children and youth through age 18. Our Residential Treatment Center opened in 2024, where we serve pregnant and parenting women with substance use and their children, providing intensive services to the mothers and prevention services to children, all while keeping the family unit intact.
What We are Working On…
Lily’s Place is excited to announce our plans for the next Lily’s Place location in the Highlawn neighborhood of Huntington. We were granted the deed of the former Highlawn Elementary School and handed the keys in 2025. We were blessed with federal funding to renovate the building and anticipate opening the first phase of the building and program in late 2026.
This location will be the primary spot for prevention and family services. Stay tuned for more updates, coming soon!
Lily’s Place is a life-affirming organization that heavily prioritizes the needs of pregnant women and mothers with babies. If a client comes through the continuum of care at Lily’s Place through any of our service providers or support staff, and that client is (1) pregnant and (2) requesting aid in accessing an abortion, our policy is that our staff make a referral to A New Beginning Crisis Pregnancy Center in Huntington, WV.