With more than four families waiting for shelter for every one permanent shelter room in Hennepin County, Haven Housing and People Serving People have partnered in the fight to end homelessness. Haven Housing plans to gift its St. Anne’s Place emergency family shelter to People Serving People on May 2, 2024, creating a new vision for family shelter in Hennepin County.

Haven Housing’s Board of Directors has elected Shereese Turner, Chief Program Officer with Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity, as the chair of the Board of Directors. Turner becomes the first former shelter guest to serve in this capacity, joining a newly elected leadership team that includes three women of color.

Thanks to a generous award from the City of Minneapolis, Haven Housing is set to embark on a multi-phase project that will enhance the safety and health of the moms and their children who stay at the 82-year old-former convent that houses St. Anne’s Place emergency shelter.

To commemorate providing a “Safe Haven for Forty Years,” Haven Housing hosted a poster art competition seeking designs that depicted a safe haven. The contest was curated in partnership with ROHO Collective, a network that embraces, supports, and nurtures emerging and professional artists of color. Haven Housing and ROHO Collective selected four winning artists, all of whom are artists of color or Northside residents. “Art is healing. It brings joy. And it is activism,” says Haven Housing Executive Director Monica Nilsson. “I am excited that the winning artists are helping Haven Housing share our values and vision with the community.”