Company Profile
Sheltering Arms Physical Rehabilitation Centers
Company Overview
For over 100 years, Sheltering Arms has served the needs of the ill and injured, and since 1981 we have specialized in state-of-the-art physical rehabilitation.
Today, we offer a full range of rehab and total wellness services, continually striving to offer innovative care at locations that are convenient for our patients and their families.
Company History
More than a century ago, Sheltering Arms began as the vision of a young woman named Rebekah Peterkin. Moved by the suffering of those around her, Ms. Peterkin made it her mission to help Richmond working families who could not afford to pay for health care. On February 13, 1889, with the help of her sewing circle and a few friends, she realized her dream in the form of a free acute hospital - Sheltering Arms Hospital.
Though Ms. Peterkin died two years later, her friends remained committed to her dream. Local physicians and nurses gave of their time to see patients at the fledgling hospital and an executive Board of ladies devoted their hearts and their time to keeping it running. They sought funds and supplies from those who could spare them, and made the hospital's first blankets by sewing newspapers inside cotton covers.
By 1894, Sheltering Arms moved to Clay Street and this institution of caring was firmly established in Richmond. Over the years, thousands of people who could not afford to be sick were nursed back to health at Sheltering Arms.
Continually looking for ways to meet the health care needs of the community, the Sheltering Arms leadership Boards began to scrutinize the health care environment of the late 1970s. With other acute care hospitals emerging to serve the Richmond community, Sheltering Arms discovered an unmet need and made the decision to specialize in physical rehabilitation.
In January of 1981, Sheltering Arms became the first private free standing physical rehabilitation hospital in Virginia. Though our specialty changed, our dedication to helping patients in financial need remained strong. Today, Sheltering Arms remains as unique as our history. Offering a full continuum of rehabilitation and health and wellness services, we stay committed to helping all patients find the Power to Overcome the obstacles of injury and illness.