Happy GivingTuesday!
We have much to celebrate and be thankful for this giving season, including the generous spirit of our community. This GivingTuesday, we are highlighting nonprofit organizations across Worcester County that are supporting the region’s vulnerable and unhoused residents.
As the weather gets colder, the work these organizations — and many others — do to provide shelter and support for the community is critical. While affordable housing is a tremendous and costly challenge to solve, these local nonprofits are making a difference every day to individuals and families in their pursuit of self-sufficiency and permanent housing.
Below, we've highlighted a few of these nonprofits that cover the different geographic regions of Worcester County. We hope you will consider them as you think about giving back today.
(Click photos to enlarge maps)
North: North Star Family Services, Inc.
North Star Family Services, Inc. operates a community-based shelter in Leominster which offers temporary housing and supportive services to homeless families. They are also in the process of creating permanent affordable housing through a new 15-unit complex called Journey Home.
In addition to providing shelter, North Star helps families obtain housing vouchers and necessary household items to transition into permanent housing.
East: Fresh Start Furniture Bank
Fresh Start Furniture Bank provides essential furniture and household items to individuals and families in need across Worcester County and Massachusetts.
The organization helps transform empty spaces into homes by distributing donated and repurposed items such as sofas, chairs, tables, beds, linens, and cookware for free, helping those who have secured housing but lack the means to furnish it.
South: Friends of St. Luke’s Guesthouse
St. Luke's Guesthouse is an 11-bed short-term shelter in Southbridge that provides temporary, safe housing for individuals and families who are homeless or at risk of homelessness.
They offer comprehensive case management services to help guests achieve self-sufficiency, including assistance with finance, employment, legal issues, nutrition, health, and housing.
West: Quaboag Hills Community Coalition
The Quaboag Hills Community Coalition is dedicated to addressing housing security in the historically overlooked and under-resourced Quaboag Hills region. A key priority for QHCC is connecting low-income residents to resources that prevent emergency expenses from leading to housing instability.
The QHCC Resource Hub helps individuals access essential housing services, while their partnership with 413Cares ensures local housing programs are included in a comprehensive database of free and reduced-cost services.
Worcester: In the Hour of Need Family Shelter
In the Hour of Need Family Shelter partners with the interfaith community, groups, and individual volunteers to provide shelter and assistance to families with children experiencing homelessness who do not qualify for state-funded Emergency Assistance shelter.
Their primary goals are to help families secure permanent housing and provide critical support services necessary for self-sufficiency and success. They also offer life skill classes, financial literacy programs, and collaborates with local banks for educational initiatives.
Worcester County: Central Massachusetts Housing Alliance
CMHA offers a range of programs to prevent homelessness and promote stable, affordable housing in Worcester County, including their Homeless Prevention Services which provide eviction prevention, housing counseling, and financial assistance for rent and utility arrears.
They also operate the Donations Clearinghouse, supplying essential household items to those transitioning out of homelessness, and the Hope for Housing program, which raises funds to stabilize at-risk families through community-based initiatives.
Learn More
There are several other nonprofits doing important work to help residents meet their basic needs, such as food and shelter. Please visit our 2024 Community Grants summary for project awards and our 2023 Community Grants summary to learn more about these and many more nonprofits that would benefit from your generous support.
Worcester County Insights has data on a number of indicators related to housing, including people living in poverty, with town-by-town data, homelessness, housing cost burden, and more.
Ways to Give
Give Directly
Visit each organization's website, linked above, to donate directly to the nonprofit or learn about other ways to support.
Give Through our Portal
If you have a donor advised fund with Greater Worcester Community Foundation, use our donor portal for a simple and efficient way of supporting the nonprofits of your choice.
Give to the Community Leadership Fund
This unrestricted fund helps us take innovative approaches to addressing the community’s most pressing issues, like our $1 million impact investment in affordable housing.
Contact Us
To learn more about our grantees, contact Jonathan Cohen, Vice President of Community Impact at jcohen@greaterworcester.org or 508-755-0980 ext. 111.
To learn more about fund options at the Foundation, contact Kelly Stimson, Philanthropic Services at kstimson@greaterworcester.org or 508-755-0980 ext. 112.
