Rainbow Place Shelter – A home for tonight and hope for tomorrow

Pillars 4 Dignity has been a staunch supporter of Rainbow Place for several years and recently became a Community Partner given our complementary mission and goals to empower and provide resources to underserved women. Specifically, Rainbow Place was established with the goal to provide women emergency overnight shelter during the hypothermia season and assist them as they transition to a better quality of life. Rainbow Place is an emergency shelter and they work with women at the very beginning of their transition out of homelessness. Their primary focus is to keep the women staying at the shelter safe during the harsh winter months and help transition them out of homelessness. The shelter is open from November 1 – March 31. All guests receive a warm, safe place to sleep, a hot dinner, breakfast, a bag lunch, shower, laundry facilities, access to case management, and referrals to local social service and treatment programs.
Eligibility for the shelter is defined by women 18 years of age or older and meets the definition of homeless (a person is considered homeless if, without HUD assistance, they would have to spend the night in a homeless shelter or in a place not meant for human habitation). To learn more and provide support please visit http://www.rainbowplace.org/index
Rainbow Place serves approximately 100 women each season, most of whom come from Montgomery County. Many of the women of Rainbow Place are newly experiencing homelessness within the past 12 months, but others have been experiencing homelessness for many years. While many are employed or receive public assistance, all of Rainbow's women are considered to be at the lowest level of poverty, unable to afford a modest apartment for themselves or for their family. Rainbow Place serves as a gateway into the Continuum of Care for the homeless in the County and partners with numerous agencies to meet the needs of the women who are served at the shelter. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the shelter can now only accommodate between 14-28 women every season.
Pillars 4 Dignity will be supporting Rainbow Place by sponsoring beds for an entire season in the fall/winter of 2021-2022. We are excited and humbled to support the important mission of Rainbow Place with other key initiatives – stay tuned for more in the coming months.