Portland’s first female-only emergency overnight shelter to be opened this spring
By Stella Dombrow ‘25
Photo outside former St. Stephen’s Episcopal Parish where Bethanie’s Room will be located
As the number of unsheltered people in Portland continues to soar past 5,000, Blanchet House is opening the first permanent women’s emergency overnight shelter in Southwest Portland this spring. The shelter, Bethanie’s Room, will assist women, including trans women, in getting off the streets and transitioning to longer-term housing.
Currently, in Portland, there is no permanent female overnight-only shelter. Having this type of shelter is critical for the city as many houseless women have experienced abuse or prefer a female-only space. Rose Haven, which provides services to houseless women and children in Portland, says two of the greatest causes of homelessness for women in Oregon are domestic and sexual violence.
While temporary, the Salvation Army opened two of these shelters for the winter, accommodating up to 200 women at a time. The shelters have been successful, as staff have received positive responses from the guests. “What we hear from people who stay in our shelters is that they appreciate that there’s a place they don’t have to sleep with one eye open,” said Major Jonathan Harvey, Salvation Army Cascade Division Commander.
Bethanie’s Room, which plans to open in the spring of 2025, will be similar to the Salvation Army shelters but will be open year-round. It will allow women temporary relief from life on the streets.
The shelter will be located at the former St. Stephen’s Episcopal Parish, near Portland State University.
Named after a former Blanchet House cafe guest who died from a hit-and-run in 2024, Bethanie’s Room honors her memory by striving to prevent other houseless women from suffering similar tragedies.
The shelter will provide up to 45 women with beds nightly. Reservations can be made in person at the main Blanchet House location or through referrals from other organizations. Eventually, Blanchet House and partner agencies will help women staying in Bethanie's Room locate more stable housing, hopefully permanently getting women off the streets.
Although the shelter should have an immediate positive impact, Blanchet House is considering potential difficulties. Ava Duckhorn, Blanchet House Day Center Services Coordinator, said, “Anytime that you're trying to create a space for a lot of people, it's hard because it's hard to cater for more than one person.”
Additionally, a potential difficulty is that the population Bethanie’s Room intends to serve often lacks access to proper hygiene and healthcare. “If we have theoretically 45 different women here every night, how are we going to make sure that it's clean and healthy?” said Duckhorn.
Blanchet House hopes to continue its mission of alleviating suffering within the Portland community, and Bethanie’s Room will undoubtedly make a positive impact. However, you can support their mission, too.
Please consider donating directly to Blanchet House or participating in one of their volunteer opportunities, such as serving meals in their free cafe, helping with food prep in the kitchen, and sorting clothing and shoe donations. Additionally, other ways the community can get involved is by donating new or used clothing in men’s sizes of the current season, making sack lunches, and assembling care kits.
Junior Maddie Snyder is an active volunteer at Blanchet House, where she participates in the Student Ambassador Program. She frequently volunteers for the Saturday lunch service and picks up shifts when she has extra free time.
Through volunteering, Snyder has made meaningful connections with meal guests, which has positively impacted her. “It just feels good to be able to do things for other people,” said Snyder.