Marys Shelter

Mary's Shelter Gulf Coast provides family-style living while educating women in the life skills needed to become independent and contributing members of their community.

Mary's Shelter Gulf Coast is a home designed specifically for the purpose of housing homeless adult pregnant women and their children. There are eight residential suites, each with a private bath and walk-in closet. The community kitchen, dining area and living room are used by all residents. There is a resource room with computers, internet access and a telephone for residential use, as well as indoor and and outdoor play facilities for the children.

Mary's Shelter Gulf Coast addresses the needs of homeless adult pregnant women experiencing an unwanted or unplanned pregnancy. Services are available to women in need, regardless of race, religion or ethnic background. The shelter provides residential care and support services in a loving Christian environment to women who need help, whether due to lack of daily living skills, education or job skills.

Mary's Shelter Gulf Coast programs are designed to enable women to make informed decisions. The Empower Me program, a token-economy program, rewards women for their participation in training/classes/groups to enhance their daily skills, self esteem, and parenting skills. Tokens may be utilized in the Empower Me store to purchase clothing, self-care and baby items, etc.

A program evaluation is completed three months following arrival and every three months thereafter. These data are utilized to adjust individual programming to ensure that identified needs are being met.

Provisions are made to help care for the babies after they are born, to enable the women to finish their education and to develop life skills. Our goal is to help women achieve happy, healthy, and productive lives. Through our programs the women can develop decision making skills as well as financial responsibility.