By Gia Myers • Posted October 30, 2024

A social worker with a lifelong passion for serving others, Robert Blake is the new Assistant Director of the Office for Child and Youth Protection in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.

While his new role is “a different direction” for him after years working in family and child case management and foster care, he feels a deep commitment to “protect children and youth from harm and abuse” while working within the archdiocese to prevent it.

Blake is originally from Mound, Minnesota, a small rural-suburban town west of Minneapolis. He grew up attending church with his family and participating in youth group activities. Summers were largely spent swimming in the lake near his house.

During his teenage years, he went on a mission trip with his church to Washington, D.C., and witnessed firsthand the needs of the homeless in that city.

“It really changed my perspective on life,” he said of helping the homeless.

This experience, plus witnessing the charitable works of his parents, gave Blake the desire to devote his life to social work, though at the time he envisioned a future of serving the homeless.

After graduating from St. Cloud State University in St. Cloud, Minnesota with a bachelor’s degree in social work, he came to the Philadelphia region in 1991 to work as a case manager with Bethanna, a Christian organization that provides adoption, child welfare services and behavioral health care.

Though it was initially a two-year commitment, Blake stayed at Bethanna for seven years.

“I found that I really loved working with children, and it quickly became a passion,” Blake said. He found that “making a difference” in the lives of children and families gave him a true sense of purpose.

His passion for social work led Blake to earn a Master of Social Work degree from Temple University in May 2000.

As his career progressed, Blake worked as a foster care supervisor at Lutheran Children and Family Service in Philadelphia for 13 years, and later he became director of intervention and community engagement with Turning Points for Children in Philadelphia, now called Asociación Puertorriqueños en Marcha (APM).

Looking ahead to his future goals, Blake wants to have a positive impact on protecting children and youth in the archdiocese. He feels motivated to work within the local Church to prevent harm and abuse, which can lead to serious trauma in the future..

He also looks forward to training and teaching people about how to create safe environments for children and youth, and to supporting his team members by helping them to succeed in their roles as well.

Blake lives with his wife Mary, a dietician, in Montgomery County. as They have an 18-year-old son, Thomas, attends college in Ohio, majoring in biology and pre-med studies.

The family are members of New Life Presbyterian Church in Glenside. Blake has volunteered with the church’s food pantry for over 30 years, and he was also a board member for the church’s thrift store, which provides funding for the food pantry.

For five years Blake also served as a member of a professional advisory committee for Liberty Home Care Services, a home-care agency serving seniors and people living with intellectual and physical disabilities.

He says he feels the need “to step in and help” whenever he witnesses people in need. “Every person I work with, I want to treat with dignity and value,” he said.

For more information on the Office for Child and Youth Protection, visit the website at https://childyouthprotection.org/index.php.