St. Margaret's Shelter Celebrates 65 Years

Catholic Charities Eastern Washington (CCEW) commemorated the 65th anniversary of St. Margaret’s Shelter (SMS) in Spokane on July 21 with a gathering of current and former clients, staff, volunteers and leaders who have guided the refuge’s evolution. The program does more than offer residents protection from the storms outside. It surrounds them with the love, help, and support they need to get back on their feet, find their path (and often their voice) and thrive in today’s dynamic world!

Named for St. Margaret of Cortona, who devoted her life to care for poor and homeless in 13th century Italy, the shelter first opened on McClellan Street in 1961 to serve women exiting Eastern State Hospital. By the 1980’s it had become a residence for intellectually and developmentally delayed women, and by 1992 it offered emergency shelter to homeless women and children in Spokane.

In 1996 CCEW’s strategic planning committee reviewed St. Margaret’s program and found it inadequate to meet growing community needs. A successful fundraising campaign led to construction of new facility dedicated in May 2000, more than doubling the program’s capacity. Tucked in the lower south hill, surrounded by trees, the state-of-the art facility features 18 rooms, shared kitchen and dining spaces, areas to gather and relax throughout the building, an outdoor playground, plus offices and meeting rooms for case management and support services.

In 2017, the US Department of Housing and Urban Development challenged shelters nation-wide to serve all families – including single fathers. St. Margaret’s pivoted to meet this challenge, expanding to serve full families.  Over the years, SMS’ management team has continued to look at best practices nation-wide to confirm what they were already mastering – a commitment to help all people feel safe, secure and respected, with connections and trust, as they look to put homelessness behind them.

Today, SMS supports families with a child in their custody, as well as at-risk youth. And it houses multiple community-based and collaborative programs serving vulnerable populations.

“At the end of the day, becoming homeless means you don’t have a support system that can help get you through a truly tough time,” explains Heather Eddy, director. “We become that family, with non-judgmental assistance and personalized supports, aimed at getting folks into a stable situation within 90 days.” Families can stay up to six months, if needed.

Services are both broad and specialized. Staff help clients develop housing stability plans – looking at previous housing experiences and evaluating their best options currently, and for the future. There are ‘Road to Renting’ classes where clients learn the obligations of renting and signing leases, assistance with ‘housing resumes’ that allow clients to explain their previous situations, and ‘personal assessments’ that help clients define individual strengths they can build on. Staff help clients sign-up for benefits, such as food stamps, medical care and other specialized supports they qualify for. Case managers rely on open-ended questions and creative thinking to find resourceful solutions based on best practices.  

Staff also help assess whether clients qualify for diversion (funds to transport clients to be with family elsewhere), or rapid-rehousing (resources to help with initial expenses of relocating) or, in the case homeless youth, if they are a good candidate for host-home programs that provide a temporary stay in pre-approved family homes.

When families depart, staff continue to check in with them for up to 24 months, offering continuing care and support.

“St. Margaret’s is all about families and all about getting people stabilized and safe,” Eddy explains. “We’re so much more than a shelter.”

Roots of innovation, collaboration and partnerships 

The key to this impact, according to Sharon Stadelman, Chief Crisis & Shelter Officer, is the organization’s ability to embrace challenges with creative thinking and inclusive, collaborative approaches. It’s a culture that has been developed through deep reflection, and a willingness to consider new ideas – always with respect for the people they serve.

Some examples:

• Food for All, one of CCEW’s most popular programs, evolved from vision of former director Nadine Van Stone, who recognized the value of gardening – both in generating healthy, fresh foods to address food insecurity, and in the discipline and joy of helping things grow. It started at SMS as a community garden in Vinegar Flats on acreage made available by a donor.

“Nadine was a visionary,” Stadelman explains, “and I was the ‘make-it-happen’ partner. Her passion for gardening as a life skill was so strong. We brought in Americorps and Jesuit volunteers to help. Our clients would work alongside the volunteers and everyone benefited.  Nadine also helped start the Perry Street Market because she lived in that neighborhood, and things just grew and grew from her vison to give back healthy foods and to teach people how to garden.” Food For All continues to make healthy food accessible for thousands across Eastern Washington.

• Spokane Community Warehouse/Furniture Bank was another successful program launched through St. Margaret’s, one that highlighted the benefit of community partnership and teamwork. “It centered around the question, how do we fill the gap so households in our community are able to have access to furniture and household supplies from one centralized location – and how do we, as a collective, make that happen,” Stadelman explains.  The ‘we’ included 12 original community partner organizations who all joined forces to provide capacity and support to fill this gap.  CCEW wound up sunsetting the program; however, SMS continues to provide customized move-in kits with linens and kitchen essentials through the support of volunteers from Sacred Heart parish. Larger items, including small appliances, are also available.

• St. Margaret’s Shelter has always accepted donations of clothing, household goods, food, toys and supplies for its residents – and through the hard work of volunteers and supporters it now offers a unique shopping experience. A former Jesuit Volunteer Corps member spearheaded the transformation of the area in the lower level – turning the sterile storeroom into “The Pearl,” a delightful boutique featuring second-hand specialty items. Clients receive ‘Pearl Bucks’ every week, and can earn extra bucks by helping out with projects around the shelter. The Spokane Community Warehouse, Vinegar Flats Garden and The Pearl provided job training opportunities for clients looking to develop marketable skills and build resumes for industry jobs.

• More recently, community collaborations have evolved to meet urgent needs. A woman from the FBI came to visit Stadelman about the shelter’s interest and ability to assist with housing for young women fleeing human trafficking – somewhere victims could be safely sheltered. It was a complex proposal, and it wasn’t until the Juvenile Court Division of Spokane County got involved that the necessary resources could be secured to support a dedicated unit at St. Margarets. Additional partners, including Lutheran Social Services, provide the special counselling and assistance these clients needed.

• St. Margaret’s focus on partnerships and collaboration also helped launch our community’s first “coordinated entry” (CE) system—focusing on families— first administered by Salvation Army in 2012, Stadelman shares. This project was designed to meet emerging federal requirements. The system streamlines the process of connecting households experiencing homelessness with available housing resources. It utilizes a standardized assessment, prioritization, and referral process. CCEW was subsequently awarded the family’s CE contract back in 2016, and now operates the program through offices in St. Margaret’s. SNAP operates the Coordinated Entry for singles, and VOA focuses on youth.

St. Margaret’s has served over 1,300 families since 2000 and over 3,032 individuals since 2009.  The program received the coveted Margaret E. Casey Award for Strengthening Families in 2008, sponsored by Catholic Charities USA.

“We were here for women with disabilities when we first opened,” Stadelman reflects, “Today is a totally different environment. We’ve had to morph the way we support households, intentionally using best practices, always looking at ways to reduce barriers for them, finding ways to put families at the center of their own choices, and tapping creative solutions. What doesn’t change is treating our families with respect, never judging them, caring about them, and ensuring they feel safe, secure and dignified here.”