Shelter and Stability
BY KRISTEN SCHRUM | PHOTOS BY JENN McKINNEY PHOTOGRAPHY
According to the National Alliance to End Homelessness, homelessness among single women has surged by more than 10% across the United States in the past decade, and Wake County has not been spared. The COVID-19 pandemic and the lack of affordable housing in the Triangle have exacerbated this crisis, leaving many women without a stable place to live. In response, The Women’s Center of Wake County has become a vital lifeline, offering a range of services designed to provide stability and secure housing for women in need.
“Our goal really is to connect women with housing,” says Amy Smith, executive director of The Women’s Center. “A big part of that is providing them stability.” Since its founding in 1977 by a group of local churches as a reentry program for women leaving prison, the center has evolved to focus on supporting women experiencing homelessness. Today, it is Wake County’s only day shelter dedicated exclusively to single women.
Evidence-Based Practices
The Women’s Center of Wake County is not just a shelter; it’s a crucial resource for women facing the harsh realities of homelessness. The center’s mission is clear: to use evidence-based practices to provide stability and housing to single women experiencing homelessness. This goal manifests itself in every aspect of the center’s operations, from the basic services they offer to the long-term housing solutions they facilitate.
In 2022, The Women’s Center was serving 40 to 50 women daily. By 2023 that number had more than doubled, with the center assisting over 1,200 women. Already by mid-2024, the center had seen 1,600 women—a stark indication of the growing need for their services. “At this rate, by the end of the year, we will have served over 2,000 women,” Smith notes, emphasizing the center’s critical role in addressing this escalating crisis.
Meeting Urgent Needs
Every day, The Women’s Center serves 80 to 100 women, providing them with a safe place to stay during the day, access to essential meals and utilities and, most importantly, a path to stability and housing. Upon arrival, each guest receives a personalized safety and stabilization service plan tailored to her specific needs. This plan includes crisis intervention, connection to medical and behavioral health care resources, and access to basic necessities such as hygiene products, clothing and food.
The center’s day shelter offers showers, laundry services and a computer lab, ensuring that women can maintain their dignity while addressing their most pressing needs. For many guests, these basic amenities are the first step toward rebuilding their lives. In 2023 alone, the center provided approximately 38,000 meals, helping to alleviate the daily struggle of food insecurity faced by so many women in the community.
Beyond meeting basic needs, The Women’s Center offers instructional and enrichment workshops, as well as group mutual aid and recovery programming Monday through Friday. These programs equip women with the tools and support they need to address the underlying issues contributing to their homelessness, such as mental health challenges and substance use disorders.
A Community Effort
One of the most remarkable aspects of The Women’s Center is its deep integration with the broader Raleigh community. The center collaborates with thousands of volunteers and numerous organizations to offer a wide range of services that would not be possible otherwise. This collaborative approach is vital in addressing the complex needs of homelessness.
“We work with every single provider here in Wake County,” Smith explains. “Because we share so many of our guests with our partners, it would be nonsensical for us to do otherwise.” The center partners with other homeless service providers, such as Healing Transitions and the Harrington Street drop-in shelter, to share resources, information and strategies critical to tackling homelessness effectively. By working together, these organizations can offer more comprehensive support to those in need, ensuring that no one falls through the cracks.
Another key partner is CASA, an organization dedicated to providing affordable housing in Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill. CASA’s Kings Ridge housing project is a prime example of the transformative impact affordable housing can have on the lives of those experiencing homelessness. This large-scale development, set to offer over 100 apartments, represents a significant step forward in addressing the housing crisis in the region. “For the women who are accepted there, this will be a life-changing housing intervention,” Smith says, emphasizing the crucial role that partnerships like this play in the center’s mission.
A New Chapter in Housing Services
In June 2024, The Women’s Center took a monumental step by launching its Safe Haven program. This initiative marks a significant expansion of the Center’s housing sevices, focusing on providing both immediate respite and long-term stabilization for some of the community’s most vulnerable women.
The Safe Haven program, which officially opened on June 11, offers a lifeline for women who have been chronically unsheltered and are in desperate need of stability. The program provides a total of 11 beds: five respite beds reserved for single women referred by the WakeMed Center for Community Health and six Safe Haven beds dedicated to women who have been chronically homeless.
“For these women, having these beds will be a critical intervention—offering them the security and support they need to begin rebuilding their lives,” says Smith.
The Safe Haven beds are specifically designed for long-term unsheltered women who face significant challenges, such as severe mental illness or other persistent issues that make traditional housing solutions inadequate. The program offers semiprivate spaces with lockable storage, providing a sense of personal security and dignity often missing in their daily lives.
How to Help
The Women’s Center’s work is made possible through the generosity of the community. There are many ways to get involved and support the center’s mission. “Being proximate to the issue is one of the ways we can make the biggest strides,” Smith says, encouraging community members to tour the facilities and see firsthand the impact of The Women’s Center. Volunteers are always needed to bring breakfast or lunch for the guests, sort donations or staff the reception desk. Group volunteer activities are also available, including opportunities to lead enrichment classes or help beautify the grounds. Donations of necessary items such as clothing, hygiene products and food are always welcome, and financial contributions are crucial to sustaining the center’s programs. Supporting the center’s housing efforts by following and sharing their posts on social media can also help raise awareness and generate much-needed financial gifts.
“This is truly the work that needs to be done in Wake County,” Smith emphasizes. “The more the community is involved, the greater the impact.”
Learn more about The Women’s Center’s work and how to help at wcwc.org.
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