A current recipient of IWF funding, the Catherine McAuley Center’s Transitional Housing Program is unique in the community as the only transitional housing program for women. The traditional definition of homelessness is primarily a male one, largely disregarding the realities of female homelessness. Unlike men, women tend to make up the “hidden homeless,” using informal strategies, such as “doubling up” or remaining with an abuser to avoid the financial uncertainty or sexual danger associated with living on the streets or in co-ed emergency shelters. The CMC treatment program acknowledges these realities, including the pathways that lead to homelessness and/or criminal offense, the impact of trauma, and the relationships that shape women’s decisions.
