Maggie's Place

History

In response to a quiet, internal invitation, five young women made a commitment to one another to live together in community and to create a home that could welcome others. Eventually, this spark of an idea grew into the vision of Maggie's Place. As recent college graduates, these young women placed their "plans", as they had known them, on hold in order create a place that could help other women through a difficult and vulnerable period in their lives. The co-founders knew each other through a tangled web of friendships and work relationships and shared a common interest in social justice and establishing a "house of hospitality' in the Catholic Worker tradition of Dorothy Day and Peter Maurin as an expression of their faith.

The women spent months discussing, researching, planning, networking, and laying the groundwork. In a providential moment, at an Easter potluck, members of the founding community were put in touch with a local advocate for affordable housing and she offered to work with Maggie's Place by giving the budding organization access to a property, delaying rent payments until the property was livable. The 1926 bungalow house in downtown Phoenix was in tremendous disrepair, having sat vacant for many years. The group persisted however, and with the assistance of a wide array of volunteers, they gutted the structure and completely rebuilt the interior. Maggie's Place was born nine months after construction began when the house welcomed its first mothers and opened its doors on May 13th, 2000 with an outdoor Mass and block party. The celebration, taking place on Mother's Day, marked the transition from a good idea to an active, dynamic home and community life. This home, later called The Magdalene House, welcomes up to eight pregnant and parenting women.

The first expansion effort was the construction of a backyard cottage, which offered storage, a classroom/recreational room, and chapel. Named Mahkenzie Hall, in remembrance of the second child of Maggie's Place who passed away in early infancy, the hall offered the community much-needed additional space. In June 2001, Maggie's Place purchased the apartment complex next door and began a massive renovation effort. With the assistance of volunteer groups and donated resources, La Casa de la Madre was opened in January 2002 and began to be used as "step two" housing. The apartments allow Maggie's Place moms that have given birth and are working a gradual transition to life away from the community. The apartment complex expanded the capacity of Maggie's Place twofold.

Through the generosity of many, Maggie's Place continued to expand, being able to offer housing and community to an increasing number of pregnant women. In January 2005, Maggie's Place opened a home in Tempe, The Elizabeth House. This house is able to accommodate 6 moms. In March 2007, Maggie's Place opened a home Glendale, The Michael House. This house is able to provide housing for 7 additional pregnant / parenting women. In October 2008, The Mary House opened in order to serve women of the Spokane and northern Idaho region, our first out-of-state expansion. Based in Coeur d'Alene, ID, The Mary House is able to provide housing for seven pregnant / parenting women. In the Summer 2009, we opened our fifth home(second out-of-state) in Cleveland, OH, The Zechariah House. The Zechariah House can accomodate nine pregnant / parenting women.

In addition to the expansion of our capacity, Maggie's Place has also known tremendous growth in the structuring of its' community life and organization infrastructure. Over time, volunteers from around the country have joined the Maggie's Place community, serving as staff members for at least a year. To accommodate the administrative needs as well as to have a location to be used for outreach to our alumnae moms, Maggie's Place acquired a charming building, located near our original home, in April 2006. We call this outreach center The Fiat House.

Maggie's Place has ongoing discussions with groups locally and nationally about the potential of homes in other communities. We look forward to seeing what the future holds!

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• Mom
• Staff
• Volunteer