Lutheran Services Northeast

Lutheran Services Northeast was formed in June 1997 by the affiliation of The Lutheran Home at Topton, based in Berks County, Pa., and Lutheran Welfare Service of Northeastern Pennsylvania, headquartered in Hazleton, Pa.

Founded in 1896, The Lutheran Home at Topton began as The Lutheran Orphans’ Home, while LWS of Northeastern Pennsylvania originated in 1956 when area congregational representatives met to establish a residential facility for older persons.

In November 1997 LSN formed an affiliation with the Visiting Nurses Association of the Lehigh Valley, creating Visiting Nurse Northeast. Because of changes in health care, VNN later became part of the Sacred Heart Health System in Allentown, Pa. In June of the following year, LSN acquired the Manatawny Manor long-term care facility in Pottstown, Pa., which had opened in 1974.

In January 2000, Lutheran Services Northeast affiliated with Tressler Lutheran Services to create Diakon Lutheran Social Ministries.