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Safe Haven Family Shelter Receives $1.25 Million Bezos Day 1 Families Fund Grant to End Homelessness
Day 1 Families Fund grants $105.9 million to 42 nonprofits helping families gain housing support and stability

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – (December 9, 2020): Safe Haven Family Shelter, the premier shelter-to-housing program for families experiencing homelessness in Middle Tennessee, today announced that it has been selected to receive a $1.25 million grant from the Day 1 Families Fund. Launched in 2018 by Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos, the Day 1 Families Fund issues annual leadership awards to organizations and civic groups doing compassionate, needle-moving work to provide shelter and hunger support to address the immediate needs of young families.

“Safe Haven is truly grateful and honored to be named a grant recipient of The Day 1 Families Fund,” said Joyce Lavery, CEO of Safe Haven. “A grant of this size will be catalytic in propelling Safe Haven further toward our vision of eliminating family homelessness in Nashville.”

This one-time grant, awarded to organizations doing meaningful work to connect families with shelter and support, will allow Safe Haven to serve and house more families, meeting more of the demand for services annually. Safe Haven will also be able to build capacity and strengthen infrastructure for key program offerings, such as youth programs and workforce development.

“Through this generous investment in our mission, Safe Haven will be able to expand upon our important work of keeping families facing and experiencing homelessness together, while providing stability, supportive services and, most of all, a place to call home,” added Lavery.

Safe Haven is one of 42 nonprofits across the U.S. to receive the third annual Day 1 Families Fund grants, as part of a continuing commitment by the Day 1 Families Fund to help end homelessness for families. The Day 1 Families Fund issued a total of $105.9 million in grants this year. To select these organizations, the fund worked with an advisory board of homelessness advocates and leaders whose expertise spans housing justice, racial equity, direct services, homelessness policy, equity for Native American communities and anti-poverty work. This year, the grant recipients from around the country include: Anchorage Coalition to End Homelessness; The Cathedral Center, Inc.; Catholic Charities of Acadiana; Coalition for Homelessness Intervention & Prevention; Coalition for the Homeless of Central Florida; Community Action Council for Lexington-Fayette, Bourbon, Harrison and Nicholas Counties, Inc.; Congreso de Latinos Unidos; Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in Ohio; Denver Indian Family Resource Center; East Los Angeles Women’s Center; East Oakland Community Project; Facing Forward to End Homelessness; Families Together; Family Life Center; Friendship Place; HELP of Southern Nevada; The Homeless Families Foundation; Homeless Outreach Program Integrated Care System; HOPE Atlanta; House of Ruth; Housing Matters; Housing Up; Kahumana; MAHUBE-OTWA Community Action Partnership, Inc.; Metro Denver Homeless Initiative; MUST Ministries; The National Center for Children and Families; Native American Youth and Family Center; North Carolina Coalition to End Homelessness; One80 Place; Poverello House; Rainbow Services; Refugee Women’s Alliance; Safe Haven Family Shelter; Samaritan House; Solid Ground; St. Vincent de Paul CARES; Su Casa – Ending Domestic Violence; The Salvation Army Austin Area Command; Time for Change Foundation; United American Indian Involvement, Inc.; and WestCare California.

The Bezos Day One Fund was launched in 2018 with a commitment of $2 billion and a focus on two areas: funding existing nonprofits that help homeless families, and creating a network of new, nonprofit tier-one preschools in low-income communities. The Day 1 Families Fund issues annual leadership awards to organizations and civic groups doing compassionate, needle-moving work to provide shelter and hunger support to address the immediate needs of young families. The vision statement comes from the inspiring Mary’s Place in Seattle: no child sleeps outside. For more information, visit www.BezosDayOneFund.org/Day1FamiliesFund.

About Safe Haven Family Shelter
For 36 years, Safe Haven has served as the premier shelter-to-housing program in Middle Tennessee that serves families facing and experiencing homelessness. Safe Haven leads our community’s efforts to house, support, empower and advocate for families, allowing them to stay together. For more information, visit www.safehaven.org.