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Our Humble Beginnings
On November 27, 1989 the temperature in Las Vegas dropped below
freezing. Fifteen homeless and abused women and children were given
refuge in the in the basement of St. Luke's Episcopal Church. They
were safe; protected from the weather and protected from the violence
on the streets.
The shelter was established by a collaborative effort between Jubilee
Ministries, Catholic Community Services and co-pastors Christine
and Roy Cole. The church provided the women and children with a
safe place to sleep and with breakfast and dinner.
Jubilee Ministries, now known as The Shade Tree, worked with the
Junior League and the City of Las Vegas to secure a small building
at 1560 North Main. This shelter opened on December 21, 1990 and
was able to accommodate up to 80 women and children each night.
54 of the women and children were able to sleep in bunk beds; others
were given mats and slept on the floor. There was no kitchen; the
cooking facilities consisted of a coffee pot and a small microwave.
The crowded building had only 1 shower, 3 sinks and 4 toilets. The
facility was painfully meager and the services were limited - but
the women and children were safe - and for that they were grateful.
In the early 1990's the shelter building was condemned and was scheduled
to be demolished. The Shade Tree Board of Directors worked diligently
to secure a parcel of land on the southwest corner of Main and Owens.
The original plans called for a 25,000 square foot facility to provide
shelter to 250 women and children. After re-evaluating the escalating
homeless situation in the valley the plans were revised to build
a 38,000 square foot facility to house 364 women and children each
night. Funds were raised in a community wide campaign and on July
12th 1999 the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation announced their award
of $5 million to build the new shelter. Construction began in December
1999 and the Shade Tree opened the new facility on November 1, 2000.
The new facility is a dream come true. It has a full kitchen, large
laundry room, adequate restroom facilities, playrooms, libraries
and has beds for up to 414 women and children each night. All essential
needs are being met on an on-going basis.
The Shade Tree provided 80,791 nights of shelter last year. We
have instituted a variety of programs designed specifically to
help our women and children take steps allow them to return to
a self-reliant and independent living situation. The focus of The
Shade Tree has moved from simply providing safe shelter to a larger
focus embracing a wide variety of social and educational programs
all designed to promote stability, dignity, and self-reliance.
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