What Garden Center Services does

Garden Center Services (GCS) is a private nonprofit organization founded in 1956 and headquartered in Burbank, Illinois, that provides residential, day, employment, and clinical services to adults with developmental disabilities in southwest Cook County. Its core programs include 10 Community Integrated Living Arrangements (CILA) homes serving 3-8 individuals each, one Intermediate Care Facility (ICF) for 15 individuals, Community Day Services delivered from the State Road Building in Burbank, and a Supported Employment Program that places individuals with disabilities at local employers including McDonald's, Chick-fil-A, WashU, and Prairie Trails Library. The organization also operates Second Chance Thrift Shoppe as a social enterprise and is constructing Garden Apartments, a 16-unit Permanent Supportive Housing project in Worth, IL, with an in-house Behavioral Health Clinic added in 2025.

GCS is funded primarily through Medicaid and Illinois Department of Human Services contracts, supplemented by individual donations, employer matching gifts, monthly giving (the Gardening Club), legacy society planned giving, event fundraising (Walk n' Roll, Sunny Smash), grant funding from the Illinois Housing Development Authority, and thrift shop proceeds (100% of which support programs). The organization does not charge clients directly for services and has no public fee-for-service pricing structure. Revenue is not publicly disclosed; total operating revenue is not stated in available materials. GCS holds CQL accreditation (2024) and currently serves over 150 individuals across its programs.

The organization is led by Executive Director Gerry Beagles (since May 2003) with a leadership team that includes an Associate Executive Director, multiple Directors covering Supportive Housing, Clinical Services, Fiscal Management, and Maintenance/Transportation, and an onsite Nurse Practitioner. GCS is governed by an independent Board of Directors with no parent company, no external ownership, and no evidence of private equity or institutional investor involvement. The technology footprint is minimal — GCS operates as a human-services care delivery organization rather than a technology company, with no app, API, SDK, or proprietary software disclosed.

Name

Garden Center Services

Legal name

Garden Center Services

Website

https://gardencenterservices.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1956

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Garden Center Services is a 70-year-old Illinois nonprofit that provides residential, day, employment, and clinical services to over 150 adults with developmental disabilities in southwest Cook County, operating 10 CILA homes, one ICF, a thrift shop, and a new Permanent Supportive Housing project.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Burbank

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Medicaid and Government Funding: Primary funding source from Medicaid and Illinois Department of Human Services for residential, day program, and supported employment services. Subject to policy and funding changes at federal level.
2. Thrift Shop Revenue: Second Chance Thrift Shoppe donates 100% of profits toward services at GCS. Revenue supports programs and services for adults with intellectual disabilities.
3. Donations and Fundraising: Individual donations, monthly giving program (Gardening Club), employer matching gifts, event fundraising including Walk n' Roll, and legacy society planned giving.
4. Grant Funding: Funding from Illinois Housing Development Authority for Permanent Supportive Housing projects including the Garden Apartments development.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Garden Center Services is a nonprofit human services organization that provides residential, day, employment, behavioral health, and housing programs for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities in the Chicago southwest suburbs. Programs include CILA (Community Integrated Living Arrangements) and ICF (Intermediate Care Facility) residential homes, Community Day Services, Supported Employment, a behavioral health clinic, and Garden Apartments permanent supportive housing. A retail thrift shop (Second Chance Thrift Shoppe) generates unrestricted earned income to subsidize mission-driven services.

Product overview

Garden Center Services is a multi-program nonprofit agency providing residential, day, and employment services to adults with developmental disabilities. The organization operates Community Integrated Living Arrangements (CILA) and an Intermediate Care Facility (ICF) for residential support; Community Day Services offering skill development and volunteer/work opportunities; and a Supported Employment Program helping individuals gain and maintain employment. The agency also operates Second Chance Thrift Shoppe as a social enterprise, the Garden Apartments Permanent Supportive Housing project, and a licensed Behavior Health Clinic. These services work together to advance lives of connection, contribution, and meaning for persons with developmental disabilities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• CILA Residential Services (Community Integrated Living Arrangements)

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 150 individuals served across all programs
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Moraine Valley Community CollegecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Leadership Development partnership - first partnership with Moraine Valley completed in 2025. Twenty-five people participated in this 5-month online program. GCS also provides tuition assistance for employee coursework at Moraine Valley.
• The Lynx ProjectminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Poetry writing group collaboration where program participants Victoria and Toni created poetry that was performed by University of Illinois students at a virtual fundraising concert.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves12 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Clearbrook: Illinois-based nonprofit serving children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities through residential, day, and employment programs. Directly comparable in mission, CILA-equivalent residential model, and Illinois funding environment.
• Ray Graham Association: Chicago-area nonprofit providing residential, day, and vocational services to people with developmental disabilities. Closely comparable in scale, service mix (CILA-style homes plus supported employment), and Illinois Medicaid funding structure.
• Misericordia: Chicago-based nonprofit offering residential, day, and clinical services to individuals with developmental disabilities across multiple community homes. Comparable in scope and the multi-program residential model GCS operates.
• The Arc of Illinois: State chapter of The Arc, providing advocacy, residential supports, and family services for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities in Illinois. Operates CILA-equivalent programs funded through the same Illinois DHS framework as GCS.
• Aspire: Midwest nonprofit providing residential, day, and supported employment services to adults with I/DD. Comparable service mix and Medicaid-funded operating model, though operating across multiple states.
• St. Coletta's of Wisconsin: Wisconsin nonprofit operating group homes, day programs, and vocational services for individuals with developmental disabilities. Comparable multi-modality I/DD services organization with similar funding structure.
• Opportunity Enterprises: Indiana-based nonprofit providing residential, day, and employment services to people with I/DD. Comparable multi-program service model with similar state Medicaid waiver funding exposure.

Peers

• Lambs Farm: Illinois nonprofit serving adults with developmental disabilities through residential, vocational, and day services, supplemented by a retail/campus social enterprise. Comparable to GCS in combining residential care with a thrift-style revenue-generating enterprise (Second Chance Thrift Shoppe).

Broad incumbents

• Easterseals: National nonprofit delivering disability and related services across an extensive portfolio of programs and geographies. Comparable in mission space but significantly larger and broader in scope than GCS's regional, focused I/DD model.

Others

• Mercy Housing: National nonprofit affordable housing developer with substantial permanent supportive housing portfolio. Relevant comparison for GCS's Garden Apartments expansion and second supportive housing project, given shared IHDA/state Low-Income Housing Tax Credit funding pathways.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutu.be/zDUuHf40YjY
• Xx.com/gardencentersrv
• Facebookfacebook.com/gardencenterservices
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/garden-center-services

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Garden Center Services