Mission

N Street Village supports women experiencing homelessness in Washington, D.C. by offering a broad spectrum of services, housing, and advocacy in an atmosphere of dignity and respect. We partner with women to achieve stability and make meaningful gains in their housing, income, employment, mental health, physical health, and addiction recovery goals.

When a woman walks through the doors of N Street Village…

She is met with dignity and respect as we honor her inherent worth…

We provide essentials like a hot meal, shower, laundry, and toiletries

She builds a community of hope and healing…

We offer a broad spectrum of services to help each woman reach her housing, health, income, employment, and recovery goals

She is connected to a safe and dignified place to call home…

We provide housing for 851 women and 6 families, and our work is to ensure every woman has a place to call her own

She inspires the community around her with her determination…

We support each woman in her journey of transformation by providing the tools and resources she needs to reach ongoing goals

She leads others in the path to healing and recovery

We rely on the voice of lived experience to guide our mission

Who We Serve

35%

were living outdoors before arriving; 17% were living with friends/family.

45%

have some post-secondary education.

33%

have experienced domestic violence.

29%

have a mental illness, addiction, or both.

3%

are living with HIV/AIDS.

59%

entered with no income; 47% had income less than the Federal Poverty line.

23%

have experienced chronic homelessness.

32%

are over the age of 50.

76%

identify as African-American; 16% are White.

Programs

Click the photos below to learn about all of our services:

Voices of the Village

Learn more stories of healing, hope, and transformation from Village clients:

Deandra

Deandra Smith had been in and out of jail too many times before she finally said, “I’m ready to change my life.” 

“I just liked to fight, like a sport,” she says. “I didn’t know where it came from, and then it took somebody from N Street to really sit me down and talk.” 

Read Full Story

Faith

I love people. I’ve learned it and understand life. Sometimes you just got to pour into people because they don’t have nobody.

Read Full Story

India

You had love all around you. You had people who didn’t want to break you down but wanted to build you up, make you want something different in life. That’s what N Street is about, for real.

Read Full Story

History

Slide or swipe images to the left to view N Street Village’s history over the past 50-plus years.

1972

The mission of N Street Village is born out of crisis 50 years ago. With 14th Street dusty with rubble and the echo of riots, Luther Place Memorial Church opens its doors to the city’s most vulnerable, offering a safe place to sleep and a warm meal to those in need.

1973

Erna Steinbruck leads the opening of Deborah's Place at 1327 N Street for women experiencing homelessness.

1981

Bethany Women’s Center opens as a drop-in day center for women in the basement of a neighboring church before moving to Luther Place.

1980

Sarah House, a transitional home for women battling substance abuse, is dedicated at 1335 N Street.

1991

Luther Place Memorial Church creates a 31-bed overnight shelter for women experiencing homelessness.

1996

N Street Village opens our Flagship location. This location brings together many of the early services with new health and wellness programs in addition to housing and shelter all in one location.

2005

The Education and Employment Center opens to assist clients in achieving literacy, vocational and employment goals.

2007

The Village opens the Recovery Housing program for women with mental illness and addiction, providing a therapeutic setting and supportive staff.

2009

The Village launches a trauma-informed program delivery model that enhances its ability to help survivors heal.

2010

N Street Village opens a healthcare and dental clinic.

2011

The Village merges with Miriam’s House, a residential community for women living with HIV and AIDS, establishing a second location.

2012

N Street Village opens its third site - Erna’s House, providing permanent supportive housing to 30 women with histories of chronic homelessness.

2013

The Village launches our Keeping Our Promise Capital Campaign to expand programming and build reserves for uncertain times.

2016

N Street Village opens the Patricia Handy Place for Women emergency shelter as part of the Mayor’s Homeward DC strategic plan, providing shelter for 213 women.

2017

N Street Village begins providing comprehensive case management support for 42 residents at the Phyllis Wheatley YWCA.

2018

The Village establishes the Judith Morris Wellness Center, providing holistic and primary healthcare services with Unity Health.

2019

The Village opens the MARJ & MAK Vocational Center, the Comcast Learning and Technology Lab, the Greenhouse Recovery Program, and the Holistic Housing Program.

2020

The Village adds two new locations - Diane’s House and Adam’s Place for Women. This growth expands our services to seven sites and allows us to meet the growing demand of services at both ends of our continuum of care.

2021

N Street Village opens its eighth location, Capitol Vista, offering 21 units of permanent supportive housing with 24-hour staff and care.

Vision

Ensure homelessness for women in D.C. is rare, brief, and nonrecurring.

Our goal is to ensure every woman in Washington, D.C. has a safe place to call home. To achieve this, the Village is proud to partner with our Mayor Muriel Bowser in city-wide efforts to “make homelessness rare, brief and non-recurring.”

Through partnership across sectors, we believe we can achieve this vision and help build a community of hope and healing for each woman in need. Recognizing the collective impact of what we can accomplish together, N Street Village provides guidance, leadership, and advocacy to our partners as they make decisions around homelessness and housing across the District.

Learn more about these partnerships and our advocacy efforts here.

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