My Sister's Place Women's Center

Photo by Catholic Review staff, Owen Sweeney, III

My Sister’s Place Women’s Center, which opened on November 20, 2008, is a comprehensive resource center welcoming Baltimore’s homeless and poor women and their children.

The mission of the program is to provide a safe, supportive environment where vulnerable women and their families can access housing, referrals, life skills training, and other resources to achieve and sustain self-sufficiency.   

MSPWC is the combined home of three Catholic Charities programs: My Sister's Place, the Samaritan Center, and Families that Work, and provides, among other things, housing assistance, education and life skills training, benefits advice and enrollment, case management, emergency financial assistance, linkages to other community providers (e.g., for mental health and addiction services), financial literacy services, and personal services (e.g., shower and laundry facilities, mail and telephone access, etc.) MSPWC also provides three meals each day to women and children in need. We are currently serving between 50 and 125 women and children daily.

Amenities include:

• A day room with comfortable seating, a fireplace, and mounted television.
• Three large classrooms that are available for workshops.
• A large kitchen which allows volunteers to prepare meals.
• A dining area which holds adjacent cubicles for outside provider assistance.
• Offices for staff allow privacy and
• An enclosed play area is provided for children.

Funding

The program is located in the former Our Daily Bread building at 17 W. Franklin Street, and two adjacent townhouses. These structures have undergone substantial renovation. Catholic Charities raised approximately one-third of the funds for construction from public sources and the remainder from private sources, including the Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation, Aegon Transamerica Foundation, and Middendorf Foundation.

Facilitators Needed at the Center!

• Career Counseling (one hour workshop & must commit to at least five sessions, Monday - Friday)

• Excercise Classes

If you are interested in facilitating any of the above classes, please contact Jackie Reid at 410.659.3763 / jreid@cc-md.org

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