Nicole Buozis
Grand Rapids, Michigan, United States

Pine Rest Christian Mental Health Services is a nonprofit organization providing comprehensive mental healthcare services in Michigan. With a 220-acre campus in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and nineteen outpatient locations across the state, Pine Rest is the largest freestanding behavioral health provider in Michigan and the third largest in the United States. This unique treatment center has grown to its current size over 115 years and is built on a humble foundation with rich history.

With the founding of Holland, Michigan in 1847 by Dutch Calvinist separatists, West Michigan saw an influx of Dutch Reformed immigrants. By the end of the nineteenth century, there were just over 13,000 Dutch immigrants in the Grand Rapids area. As the United States entered the Second Industrial Revolution, these communities were able to develop more complex social structures. The Christian Psychopathic Hospital, later renamed Pine Rest, was formed in 1910. Jacoba Robbert and Reverend J. Keizer led the effort, motivated by individual encounters with people in their communities who were struggling with mental illness. Robbert was particularly impacted by a woman who frequently wandered near her home, located near the state psychiatric institution in Kalamazoo. Upon investigation, Robbert discovered that the woman was a patient known to frequently elope from the state institution, particularly on Sundays. With this patient in mind, Robbert began ministering at the state institution alongside Rev. Keizer, a Christian Reformed minister. She noted a lack of opportunities for patients to incorporate their religious beliefs into their care and found that her visits brought comfort and relief for many patients.

In 1906, Robbert published an article in the local Dutch newspaper, De Wachter, calling for the establishment of a Christian mental institution. Local churches responded primarily through their Ladies Circles, which were groups of women within the Reformed and Christian Reformed Churches dedicated to fellowship and community outreach. With their assistance, Robbert and Rev. Keizer raised funds to purchase the 173.5-acre Cutler Farm in Grand Rapids for $18,000 in 1910. By the end of 1911, this property became home to the Christian Psychopathic Hospital and employed nurses, a cook, a farmer, and a solicitor.

In 1911, a man who had recently moved from Grand Rapids to Iowa began exhibiting signs of mental illness, including physical aggression within his new parish. Rev. Peter Jonker lead this congregation and helped the man return to Grand Rapids. After the man broke windows and repeatedly pulled the stop cord on the train, local authorities were alerted and planned to place him in the Kalamazoo State Hospital. Rev. Jonker, having heard of the new Christian mental institution, advocated for the man to be housed there instead. This resulted in his congregant becoming the first patient of the Christian Psychopathic Hospital. The first doctor and superintendent at the hospital was Dr. Gerhardus Stuart. Prior to starting his work in 1912, Dr. Stuart traveled to the Netherlands and studied under physicians at Amsterdam’s Free University and Veldwijk Hospital for several months, aiming to incorporate their more progressive moral treatment models into the daily care of patients in the new Christian Psychopathic Hospital.

The hospital initially consisted of a single farmhouse where staff and patients lived together. After one year of treatment, the hospital’s first patient was discharged with improvements in his behaviors, paving the way for future patients. By 1913, the hospital faced costly drainage issues and attempted to purchase land closer to the city of Grand Rapids. However, these efforts were impeded by early stigma against the hospital and its patients. On the first attempt to purchase land, the landowner refused the sale to prevent development of an “asylum” in the area. The hospital successfully purchased a different plot of land located west of the city, though development was blocked by an injunction filed by the surrounding residents. This injunction was ultimately brought before the Michigan Supreme Court, where it was upheld and the hospital was forced to sell the property. These court proceedings took approximately two years to conclude. Over that time span, hospital leadership was able to raise enough funds to repair the drainage concerns and install utilities. With access to water, sewer, and electricity, the hospital expanded rapidly.

In 1922, Dr. Jacob Mulder became superintendent and greatly shaped the future of the hospital. Early patients were those with mental illness, dementia, or epilepsy. Treatment focused on rest, religious care, graded assignments, and occupational therapy. The hospital chapel was completed in 1929 and full-time Reformed and Christian Reformed pastors offered programs in both Dutch and English. Members of the community engaged in these services as well and the chapel became a regular venue for weddings. By 1940, the capacity on campus had increased to 271 patients and the property had grown to 220 acres. The hospital treated over 1,300 patients in 1935 alone, relying on financial support from the local religious community and other donations to cover operating costs.

The hospital was largely self-sustaining through growing crops and raising farm animals, including goats, pigs, chickens, and cows. Patients played active roles in maintaining the homestead through farming, sorting beans, knitting, sewing, weaving rugs, cleaning vegetables, and household chores. Certain patients were permitted to walk the grounds freely and grow their own garden plots. The on-site bakery provided bread and desserts for the campus, including vetbollen, a traditional Dutch donut. In the 1950s, the bakery produced an impressive 800 loaves of bread per week to feed patients and staff.

Psychiatric treatment advancements in the 1940s and 1950s substantially shaped further growth. The introduction of electroconvulsive therapy, lithium, and chlorpromazine significantly improved long-standing symptoms and reduced the length of hospitalization for many patients. As the length of stay was reduced, treatment began to shift towards outpatient care. Local community members had already been visiting the hospital in the evenings for informal support sessions with staff, which helped to facilitate this transition towards outpatient treatment. Despite strong community support for the hospital, mental health stigma persisted. The property’s barn read “C.P. Hospital Farm” on the side and locals began referring to the hospital as the “Crazy People Hospital.” Partly to combat this perception, the hospital’s name was changed to Pine Rest Sanitarium in 1940. As treatment became more diversified on campus, the name was changed to Pine Rest Christian Association in 1952 to better encompass the available services.

The Children’s Retreat and Training School officially opened in 1953, offering a boarding school with capacity for 125 developmentally delayed children who required a variety of assistance in daily functioning. This new school necessitated specially trained staff who were equipped to work with infants, toddlers, and grade-school-aged children. In addition to these new facilities, specialized buildings had been erected to provide treatment for specific patient populations, such as mentally ill and “quiet and senile” patients, with separate buildings for men and women. By the time of Dr. Mulder’s retirement in 1956, the hospital employed over 200 staff members and had grown to look much different than the original homestead.

Dr. Gelmer Van Noord became the next superintendent of Pine Rest and moved his family to a house on campus, as was customary at the time. Under his leadership, Pine Rest continued to cultivate a uniquely therapeutic environment. Historical accounts by his daughter Barbara, who grew up on Pine Rest’s campus during the 1950s and 1960s, highlight the hospital’s distinctive environment. She described a patient who played the accordion on the grounds, a freely roaming peacock, and a pony that gave rides to child patients. This setting contributed to Pine Rest’s growing reputation and attracted national attention at times. The hospital garnered the attention of President Gerald R. Ford, who visited the campus both during his time in Congress and after his tenure in the White House. As word spread, patients from across the United States and even from other continents began to seek care at Pine Rest.

Over the next few decades, the campus continued to grow and adapt to the changing needs of the community. As a result, many of the specialized buildings were no longer needed and eventually repurposed. The Children’s Retreat Center closed as medical advancements and changes in stigma allowed for the reintegration of these children into their families and the community. Following decades of change, the hospital adopted its current name, Pine Rest Christian Mental Health Services, in 1990.

Hospital services have continued, though Pine Rest’s scope has shifted to include more robust outpatient treatment, partial hospital programs, a psychiatric urgent care, and a residential medical detoxification program. Pine Rest offers expertise in mental healthcare for all age groups, perinatal mental health, eating disorders, and substance use disorder treatment. In addition to 198 beds across nine specialized inpatient units, Pine Rest offers 146 residential beds both on and off campus. Pine Rest has become a training center for psychiatrists, psychologists, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, social workers, medical students, nursing students, and chaplains. Spiritual care remains an available component of care, with on-site chaplains available for religious services and specific patient needs.

Pine Rest has seen immense growth and change over the last 115 years. In 2024 alone, Pine Rest provided care for over 53,000 patients. Pine Rest continues to evolve in addressing changing mental health needs and plans to open the Pediatric Center for Behavioral Health in 2026. This was made possible through the dedication and support of staff, the local community, and the State of Michigan. Building on a foundation of decades of evolving mental health care, Pine Rest continues to play an integral role in the state and looks forward to continued progress and innovations in patient care.

References

1. Souvenir of the Christian Psychopathic Hospital. Booklet. Christian Psychopathic Hospital; 1929.
2. 40 years of Christian Mercy in Action. Pine Rest Sanitarium and the Christian Psychopathic Hospital; 1951.
3. Profile of a Hospital: Pine Rest Christian Hospital – 50th Anniversary. Pine Rest Christian Hospital; 1960.
4. Brinks HJ. Pine Rest Christian Hospital, 75 Years, 1910-1985. Pine Rest; 1985.
5. The Pine Rest Centennial Booklet. Pine Rest Marketing & Communications Department; 2010.
6. Van Noord BJ. Pine Rest Stories: A Murmur of Starlings: A memoir of a family childhood at Pine Rest when it was one of the largest Christian psychiatric hospitals in the world; 2018.
7. 2024 Annual Report. Pine Rest Christian Mental Health Services; 2025.
8. Harmsel LT. Dutch in Michigan. Michigan State University Press; 2002.
9. 1900 Census: Volume I. Population, Part 1. United States Census Bureau; 1901.