POULSBO — In fall, Tim Ryan Properties of Poulsbo issued a challenge: it would match all funds raised, up to $100,000, for the Morrow Manor project.
Just before Christmas, thanks to an anonymous donor who supplied the final $9,000, that challenge was met.
Championed by the Poulsbo-North Kitsap Rotary Club, Morrow Manor is a planned eight-unit community that will provide long-term supportive housing for domestic violence survivors and their children. It will be located on 2.3 forested acres on Noll Road; the acreage was donated, and a portion of the property was set aside for a city park.
Advocates say the need for such housing is great.
The duplexes will be named in honor of Ardis Morrow, a longtime proponent for change in domestic violence laws and an advocate for DV services in the county. She is the founder of Eli’s House, a duplex of transitional homes in Poulsbo named in memory of her great-grandnephew, a 3-year-old who died after being kicked by his father in 1986. The other transitional housing is Tersha’s House in Silverdale, named for Tersha Jo Brown, who was shot to death by her boyfriend in Sacramento in 2009.
The YWCA ALIVE Shelter provides temporary emergency housing for women and children affected by domestic violence, but in 2013 was unable to provide shelter or housing for 1,020 women and children because of lack of capacity. (Jackie Brown, director of YWCA’s shelter and housing programs, said when the shelter is full, YWCA reaches out to shelters statewide).
In the “supportive housing” model of Morrow Manor, residents can stay on a sliding scale of affordable rents for up to six years while they rebuild their lives. The YWCA of Kitsap County will provide ongoing advocacy and other support services to help survivors build sustainable futures with access and avenues to education and careers.
By comparison, the average stay at the YWCA’s 17-bed ALIVE shelter is 65 days. Stays in the four family units of Eli’s Place and Tersha’s House average up to 24 months.
Fundraising for the $2.1 million project is well underway with a commitment of $500,000 from the C. Keith Birkenfeld Memorial Trust, a major gift from the estate of Sandra Boro Hill and, now, a $100,000 donation match from Tim Ryan Properties.
“Contributions from far and wide, as well as so many local ones, are slowly comingin — from $10 up to the large amounts mentioned,” Morrow said. “I am so honored and grateful to live in a community that shows such heartfelt generosity.”
