Happy Summer! We’ve made an update to this month’s list and added a QR code-scan it with your smartphone and it will take you right to our Amazon Wish List-how easy! Your donations help meet our resident’s basic needs, and show them their community is here to lift them up. Thank you for taking the time to be part of that!
You can also download a copy of this month’s list below:
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Happy May! This month and always, we honor those who commit to sharing their strength, energy, time, and resources to our residents. To our supporters who are Mothers, thank you for making space in your lives for Hospitality House.
“Friends. Sisters. Mothers. Professors. When women affirm women, it unlocks our power. It gives us permission to shine brighter,” -Elaine Welteroth
Many of our residents are mothers themselves, and are in need of support. Please take the time to visit our Amazon Wish List and consider lending a hand up to our residents to help them shine brighter!
Spring has sprung, and we’re starting the month fresh with our updated Donations Needed list! Please check it out below and visit our Amazon Wish List for updated needs. Thank you for being a friend of Hospitality House!
Winter is almost over, so now begins our shift to some springtime needs! Please check out our Amazon Wish List and see if there are any needs YOU can help us meet!
Join us for our Spring Fling 2023-back in person–Event tickets available to purchase here!
*Purchasing tickets will automatically create a registration
If you are unable to join us in person, register for the online portion of the event here!
+Live and silent auction featuring trips, services, and unique experiences
+Special musical performance by Keilah Paul & Chris Kunard
+Delicious buffet dinner, wine and beverage bar
+Satisfy your sweet tooth with the Dessert Dash
+Heartfelt success stories shared by grateful graduates
It’s February! It would mean so much to us if you’d be our valentine and show our residents even more love this month. Please visit our Amazon Wishlist and check our our Donations Needed list for updated house and resident needs. It’s also the last month to donate an extra .5% of your purchase (at no extra cost to you!) through AmazonSmile!
Click above to enlarge and print!
Happy New Year! We hope that your year is full of health, hope, and joy. Thank you for standing by our side in 2022 and being part of our resident’s journeys!
Hospitality House plans to serve many more individuals in need in 2023, and we can’t do that without you. Please check out this month’s donations needed list to help us continue providing home, health, and hope to women experiencing homelessness!
Noelle arrived at Hospitality House having never experienced homelessness before. A loving grandmother, she was staying with her daughter and a grandchild for several months at a discounted rental rate for providing childcare. All was well until her daughter’s partner moved in and the situation turned toxic. Due to her living situation becoming increasingly volatile, Noelle called Hospitality House to seek shelter. Noelle was a self-described people pleaser, though, and with a little convincing from her daughter, Noelle decided to turn down a bed with Hospitality House when it was offered.
Months later, Noelle called again. She knew that enough was enough and that she needed to stand up for herself and do what would move her forward. She moved into Hospitality House ready to receive the help she deserved. During her time here, Noelle met with our Case Manager to determine goals, receive advice, and discuss next steps. She had been on several housing lists for a few years, but nothing had come up quite yet. With Connie’s case management assistance, Noelle was able to get her Social Security benefits increased and develop a better sense of what type of housing was available to her.
Her dream home is in West Seattle, within walking distance to a few grocery stores, and near the schools her grandchildren attend. She would love to be close enough for them to visit for lunch! While the perfect housing opportunity did not come up during her stay at Hospitality House, another one did. A former contact offered her free rent for an apartment in Seattle through January in exchange for performing cleaning services. With a Seattle address, Noelle’s housing prospects grew. A requirement of Seattle Senior Housing is that the potential resident must currently reside in Seattle. Prematurely exiting from Hospitality House wasn’t an easy choice but Noelle knew it was a step in the right direction for longer term housing options, and a bright future.
“I never thought I’d be the person sitting with my stuff on the park bench being stared at.”
That’s what our client, Alexandra, told staff days into her stay at Hospitality House. She said that when someone approached her in a local park and asked what business she had there, Alexandra didn’t even know they were speaking to her because she didn’t “look” homeless with only a backpack and a few essentials.
Following separation from her partner and attempting to pay off debt, Alexandra found herself experiencing homelessness for the first time. Alexandra explained to staff that after her experience in the park, she realized that she was holding onto stigmas surrounding homelessness.
Many people have an idea of what homelessness can look like. There’re actually quite a few options around for a “drunk beggar,” “hobo,” or “bum man/woman” Halloween costume, which just reinforce the idea that you can identify who is experiencing homelessness by looking at them. If you saw one of our clients outside of Hospitality House, you’d never know they were experiencing homelessness. They have jobs as a desk worker at a hotel, an intern at a holistic wellness center, a nanny. They wear name brand clothes and own cars. Alexandra was enrolled in college classes during her entire time at Hospitality House, had a gym membership, and participated in a work study program through school-not exactly fitting the idea of a “bum woman” Halloween costume.
Alexandra stayed at Hospitality House until she found a two-year transitional housing program that has a special focus on students and women re-entering the workforce. Before leaving HH, Alexandra said her time here reshaped her understanding of homelessness and those who are working through it. Homelessness doesn’t have a certain look, and it doesn’t care what you’ve accomplished in life, or what you’re working toward-it can affect anyone, at any age, at any time. Hospitality House is here to meet residents like Alexandra where they are and help them find their footing and prepare them to thrive!