OUR STORY

In 1988, the film God Bless the Child inspired Ursuline Sister Margaret Scheetz [pictured at left] to action. It was the story of a mother and daughter caught in the cycle of poverty and homelessness. Focusing on that issue, Sister Margaret learned that assistance for homeless women with children remained a great need in Youngstown. Believing that education is the best way out of poverty, she established Beatitude House, a not-for-profit nondenominational corporation of the Ursuline Sisters of Youngstown, to address this need.

In 1990 an anonymous donor gave the Ursuline Sisters a handsome Tudor home on the north side of Youngstown. The Sisters transformed the building into an apartment complex for transitional housing. The first four families moved in during the summer of 1991, and the moms began earning their degrees. Soon two more apartment complexes expanded the program to serve twelve families.

In 1996 Beatitude House established an education and career preparation program to offer additional services such as job placement, computer literacy and math tutoring, along with child advocacy, GED preparation, and counseling services. Both programs have now expanded into Warren.

In February 2000 the Trumbull County Housing Collaborative, a coalition of agencies serving the homeless in Trumbull County, invited Beatitude House to join their organization and establish Beatitude House programs in Warren. In Spring of 2002, a new transitional housing site was opened and now houses 7 homeless families and one resident manager. The building, on Tod Avenue, also is home to the education/career preparation site in Warren.

In 2006, Beatitude House opened its Permanent Supportive Housing program for homeless women with disabilities, or who have children with disabilities that keep their mothers from being able to work.

Sister Margaret passed away in January 2001, but her dream and ministry continues to help women and children break the cycle of poverty and violence and build lives of stability and hope.

Beatitude House provides housing and support to any woman dreaming of better opportunities for herself and her children.

BEATITUDE HOUSE MISSION STATEMENT

Beatitude House, sponsored by the Ursuline Sisters, is committed to disadvantaged women and children in the Mahoning Valley. In an atmosphere of care and compassion, the programs focus on counseling to promote self development and education to obtain needed skills. Through this holistic approach, both women and children are empowered with the work habits and motivation to realize their full potential.