University District women's haven may have to close

Last week, the women of Elizabeth Gregory Home found out they will be homeless again unless the program raises $30,000 in a matter of days.

The women will likely be forced to leave their University District haven at the end of the month and go back to the streets.

One of the women had arrived by bus, seeking refuge from an abuser.

Two women from Ethiopia had been abandoned by their families and don't speak English well enough to navigate the transitional-housing system.

Another woman is three weeks away from earning her GED. She hopes to be a medical-unit coordinator and support herself after fleeing an unsafe home situation.

"It just feels like the world fell out from underneath me," she said.

Without an immediate influx of cash, the program will have to give notice to the landlord Monday, said Kimberly Jackson, executive director.

The daytime drop-in center would also shut down, cutting off food, laundry, Internet and case-management services to roughly 150 women a month.

Donations are down, and Jackson blames the economy.

Last year, the average individual donation was $200 to $300, she said. This year, it's closer to $100. Also, the nonprofit drew on reserves last year to supplement its $384,000 budget. Now, the reserves are gone.

Charitable organizations across the country are hurting as donors begin to view giving as a luxury, according to a July report by The Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University.

The trend could be devastating for King County's roughly 8,500 homeless.

The Elizabeth Gregory Home's 11 beds may seem negligible, but the home provides about 10 percent of Seattle's 119 beds dedicated to single women in transitional housing.

"It's safe, and it's clean, and they know the food is good, so to lose something like this is huge," said case manager Michelene Felker.

If the nonprofit can make it through September, several pending grants and two major fundraisers in October and November would likely keep the home afloat, Jackson said.

The nonprofit is preparing for the worst. The drop-in center is now closed on weekends. Half the staff has been laid off. The residents are trying to find housing, but it may take a month or longer.

Even if other transitional housing opens up, it is unlikely the women will find a living situation as comfortable as the one they're in.

The nonprofit leases the bottom floor of an apartment complex, where the women have private bedrooms and bathrooms and share a kitchen. They can stay for up to two years with free food, clothes and case management. Residents can check e-mail, get job-search and life-skills training and socialize at the drop-in center across the street, in the basement of University Lutheran Church. The center also serves women off the street, up to 20 per day, Jackson said.

When residents and drop-in clients talk about the home, the word that's used most often is "safe." The center has never had to call police, Jackson said. In contrast to downtown shelters, where some women say they've been harassed and even assaulted, the Elizabeth Gregory Home is quiet, peaceful, even cheerful.

Teresa Rowland, 42, said living there has taught her "to trust people again." Rowland became homeless in 2004 after her life savings — $4,000 — was stolen.

Compared with the other residents, Rowland is lucky; her application for permanent housing, with shared bathroom and kitchen, has a good chance of being approved. But Rowland, who considers herself a "big sister" to the other women, said they were "still reeling" from the news that their home might disappear.

"It hit hard," Rowland said. "The teargates just opened up."

Noelene Clark: 206-464-2321

or nclark@seattletimes.com