People around the world honor today’s World Homeless Day by working to prevent and end homelessness and to alleviate the suffering of those experiencing it. This international day serves as a platform to celebrate good works, benchmark progress, advocate for improved policies and funding that can help prevent and end homelessness.
For this year’s World Homeless Day, we shine our light on the importance of Catholic Community Services’ Nativity House Day Shelter in its previous role as a beacon of hope for those in need of support and the community organizations who depended on its existence. CCS leadership closed Nativity House Day Center at the beginning of September 2025.
Losing Nativity House as a day shelter with warm food and space to prepare meals, supported by community connections, plus a clothing closet and an address to receive important mail, along with care and assistance from knowledgeable and trusted staff is devastating to the people served at Catholic Community Services. The cataclysmic impact is felt across the community, especially from partners in struggle.
Even if a funding loss was forecast by CCS leadership, that information was withheld from community partners. CCS leadership’s decision to delay the announcement of the Nativity House closure surprised not only clients and staff, but also providers who relied on CCS as support for their own participants.
As we continue to share the far-reaching consequences of CCS leadership’s decision to close Nativity House, we remind our community that funding aside, it costs nothing to communicate expected disruptions to collaborators, participants, and staffers:
“Closing the Catholic Community Services Nativity House Day Shelter will create a huge gap in critical services for Tacoma's houseless -and housed- population. This is especially true for those struggling with substance use and complex physical, mental health, and psychosocial issues.
Elimination of the CSS Day Shelter will further diminish the quality of lives for the individuals who frequented the Day Shelter and, more importantly, make life for the people who rely on this space more difficult and less safe. It is extremely unfortunate that funding is not available to maintain operations. It is also incredibly disappointing that no one else has stepped forward with other sources of funding.
As a provider whose organization regularly referred people to the CSS Day Shelter, we are now at a loss as to where to send the folks we serve. Communicating changes to the broader community in multiple formats is essential for building trust. For us, earning the trust of the people we serve is often the hardest, but also the most rewarding aspect of the work we do. When services, especially essential services, end abruptly, trust is eroded. Good, consistent communication is key to maintaining trust between providers and, more importantly, with service recipients.
As the Director of an agency where we directly engage with houseless folks struggling to exist in Tacoma, I am well aware of the physical and emotional toll this extracts from those that are called to this work. Supporting front-line care staff is essential for maintaining -and retaining- a quality, committed, and emotionally-balanced workforce. We demonstrate our care for those we serve by treating those we employ to serve them with the same compassion and respect," Paul A. 성철 LaKosky, PhD., Executive Director of Dave Purchase Project/Tacoma Needle Exchange.
Catholic Community Services leadership stated the decision to close Nativity House day shelter and reduce staffing was planned and coordinated with community partners due to the uncertain federal funding landscape and there has been no change to discretionary funding support to sustain programs. However, at the Tacoma Pierce County Coalition to End Homelessness meeting on May 30, 2025: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wBlP7Doq098 during a Q&A response (starting at 24:14), it is revealed that CCS leadership decided discretionary funding can no longer be used to support essential programming that does not generate profit, like Nativity House day center.
Since the closure of Nativity House Day Center, a new threat has materialized: City Councilor John Hines is proposing an expanded Tacoma camping ban that would apply to a five-block radius around parks, playgrounds, and libraries. Additionally, the camping ban would extend to areas around permanent homelessness shelters if the City Council is supportive. As proposed, people caught violating the expanded no-camping ordinance would face 30 days in jail, a $250 fine, or both.
With fewer options for those facing homelessness and the organizations who support them, we ask for petition signers’ continued support: share the petition and updates with your community then use public comment to voice opposition to the expanded camping ban at the Tacoma City Council meeting, Tuesday October 14 at the Tacoma Municipal Building in the Council Chambers, starting at 5pm. For more information, including how to attend and offer public comment remotely or to submit written comments before the meeting, see https://tacoma.gov/event/city-council-meeting-2-2-2/2025-10-14/
On this World Homeless Day, we urge our supporters to work together and become the much-needed beacon of hope for all.
We stand together!