Thirty Years of Safety, Healing, and Hope
Voices of A Woman’s Place: In Their Own Words
In 1995, A Woman’s Place opened its doors with a simple but urgent mission: to create a safe haven for unaccompanied women experiencing homelessness in San Francisco. At the time, resources for women were extremely scarce. Too many, especially those without families, were left to navigate violence, trauma, and instability without a place designed for their unique needs.
For three decades, A Woman’s Place has stood as a refuge—open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week—for women and gender-expansive people seeking safety, care, and a pathway to stability. What began as a vision shaped by advocates and community leaders has grown into a cornerstone of Community Forward SF’s continuum of care.
Since opening, A Woman’s Place has served at least 15,780 women—each with her own story, her own journey, and her own courage. Here, women have found shelter, healing, and pathways to housing. They’ve received meals, medical care, and mental health support. They’ve found case managers who believed in them, peers who understood them, and staff who stood by them in moments of crisis. Most importantly, they’ve found a place that affirmed their dignity and reminded them that they are not alone.
In 2012, Community Forward expanded our services and moved the A Woman’s Place Drop-In Center to its own location, which allowed for expanded drop-in services. Since then, it has stood as the sole sanctuary in our city where women can access immediate safety and support—with no questions asked. This low-threshold, 24/7 space has become a lifeline for women in moments of crisis, offering not just respite but connection to the broader Women’s Wellness Pathway.
As we celebrate 30 years, we also look ahead. The needs of women in San Francisco have grown more complex, and so has our response. Today, A Woman’s Place is more than a shelter—it is part of a larger Women’s Wellness Pathway that helps women move from safety to permanent housing and long-term wellness.
This anniversary is not just about the past—it’s about honoring every woman who walked through our doors, every staff member and volunteer who stood beside them, and every partner who believed that women deserve safe, stable, and dignified housing. Together, we’ve built not just a shelter, but a legacy.