A one-stop-shop that helps Baton Rouge families in distress is at a crossroads after 14 years in operation as its founding director Roxson Welch retires and the remaining leadership mulls its future.
The Family and Youth Service Center, which opened in 2012, was meant to serve as a home base in the Capital City for government agencies and nonprofits that help families, fight truancy and work to prevent juvenile crime.
From the beginning, Welch managed the 9.3-acre campus at 1120 Government St., guiding a steady stream of children and adults to the help they need. Welch came to the job, which she considers the highlight of her professional life, after previously working as a classroom teacher, a Metro Council member, a lawyer and educational outreach coordinator for city-parish government…