about mary’s place
MARY’S PLACE ENSURES THAT NO CHILD SLEEPS OUTSIDE BY CENTERING EQUITY AND OPPORTUNITY FOR WOMEN AND FAMILIES.
Since 1999, Mary’s Place has helped thousands of women and families move out of homelessness into more stable situations.
We do this in three ways:
Across five emergency family shelters in King County, we keep families together, inside, and safe when they have no place else to go, providing resources, housing and employment services, community, and hope.
Each day, our housing team works with families to address barriers and empower parents to build family stability, secure housing, and prepare for employment. Kids are connected with schools, participate in fun and enriching activities, and go on outings and adventures in Kids Club. In the evening, families in shelter eat dinner, do homework, spend time together, and prepare for the week ahead. Our families include two-parent families (pregnant or with children), single parents of all genders (pregnant or with children), extended families, and families with pets!
Children with life-threatening illnesses should not be living in cars and tents awaiting chemo or dialysis. Families who have lost everything in the struggle to get their child well have a place to receive care and support in shelter in Mary's Place Popsicle Place program.
Still, capacity is limited and hundreds of families are outside each night in cars and tents.
Mary’s Place Seattle’s team of mobile outreach specialists work with unsheltered families where they are, bringing supplies and resources to help address barriers. With flexible funding, the team helps families move quickly into stable housing, bypassing a shelter stay.
But keeping families in their homes, preventing homelessness in the first place, reduces trauma, particularly among children, stops the cycle of generational homelessness, and is cost-effective.
Our Women’s Day Center in downtown Seattle provides meals, showers, laundry, access to resources, safety and relationship to over a hundred women each day for more than 20 years.
The support of the community keeps our doors open. The path out of homelessness can be long and challenging. Each person that finds housing is ultimately responsible for their accomplishment, but often a community of support, education, and advocacy has helped along the way.