Giving Tuesday Giving Back to Initiatives Like Grace Garden

The permanent housing for women and children will open at the end of summer 2019

WEST FARGO, N.D. — The YWCA gets even closer to its mission of providing permanent, supportive housing to homeless women and children.

In our lead story, KVRR’s Danielle Church tells us how the shelter’s largest permanent housing project, Grace Garden, will create an impact come summer 2019.

The YWCA is best known for providing emergency shelter to women and children in the community, but the organization has also been providing supportive housing for 30 years.

“Beyond emergency shelters, supportive housing is really that longer term housing that helps women rebuild, to really stabilize, to work on education goals, to get healthier,” said Julie Haugen, YWCA COO.

This Giving Tuesday, donations to the YWCA are only helping to further that goal.

For every donation the shelter receives, Thrivent Financial Northland Region will match it up to $10,000.

“People love to leverage their contributions and this is huge to support the work we do,” Haugen said.

The YWCA’s most recent project, Grace Garden, had its groundbreaking in July.

It’s all part of the organization’s 2016 goal to double the size of its supportive housing initiative.

All the framework to the apartment building is now complete.

Grace Garden will provide permanent housing to 75 women and children with its 30 units when it’s open at the end of the summer.

“Having a place to call home really starts everything. Having that stability, especially if you have a family, is really critical having that base to start from because once you’re housed, you can begin addressing all those other things that led to homelessness,” Haugen said.

More than 80 percent of the women who live in the YWCA’s housing across the metro are able to escape homelessness and live a normal life again.

“Shelters really are important and they have to be there. But no one wants to live in a shelter. So we know that providing homes will really help people gain that independence that we’re all seeking,” Haugen said.

About 59 percent of the women who seek shelter at the YWCA are victims of domestic violence.

When these walls are put up, they will help empower all of the women who live inside.

“I can think of no better way than to make certain that they have independence and stability and a life free of violence,” said Erin Prochnow, YWCA CEO.

Residents of Grace Garden will also continue to have advocates working hand–in–hand with them as they live a life free from violence.