About Peaceful Guidance
A home built on hope, structure, and genuine care.
Peaceful Guidance Youth Services was founded on a simple belief: that every boy, regardless of what he has been through, is capable of growth. We exist to provide the kind of steady, therapeutic home environment that makes that growth possible.
Our mission
"To provide boys in Virginia with a safe, structured, and therapeutically rich residential environment — one where they can heal, develop, and move toward a hopeful future."
What guides us
Our core values
Safety first
Physical and emotional safety is the foundation of everything we do. Without it, nothing else is possible.
Dignity always
Every boy in our care is treated with respect and dignity — regardless of his history, behavior, or circumstances.
Relationship-centered
Healing happens in relationship. We invest in genuine, consistent connections between staff and residents.
Family as partners
Families are not peripheral to our work — they are central to it. We engage them as partners throughout the care process.
Continuous growth
We hold high expectations for the boys in our care and for ourselves — always learning, always improving.
Community connection
We prepare boys to return to and thrive in their communities, maintaining connections to Virginia's broader support network.
Our story
Rooted in Chesterfield. Committed to Virginia's youth.
Peaceful Guidance was established in Chesterfield, Virginia to address a clear need in the state's continuum of care: a residential program for boys that combines the structure of a therapeutic setting with the warmth of a real home. Too often, young people in the system experience placements that feel institutional — disconnected from family, community, and a sense of belonging.
We set out to build something different. A place where boys are known by name, not case number. Where staff show up consistently, hold boundaries with compassion, and believe in each resident's capacity to change. Where the work of healing is taken seriously — and so is the joy of being young.
Licensing & compliance
Peaceful Guidance Youth Services is licensed by the Virginia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services (DBHDS). We undergo regular reviews and maintain compliance with all applicable state regulations governing residential therapeutic programs for youth. Our licensing reflects our commitment to operating with transparency, accountability, and the highest standards of care.
Program at a glance
- Licensing authority
- Virginia DBHDS
- Program type
- Residential therapeutic program
- Population served
- Boys ages 12–17, Virginia
- Funding accepted
- DSS, CSA, Medicaid, private pay
Learn more about how we work.
Explore our therapeutic approach or reach out to start a confidential conversation about placement.