Mary’s Shelter, a Gulf Coast program supporting homeless pregnant women, will host the grand opening of the first of three homes in Mary’s Village on April 17 at 2 p.m.

The new transitional housing community is designed to guide residents toward home ownership.
According to program organizers, the Mary’s Shelter program begins with Mary’s Haven, an 11-bedroom residential facility that offers pregnant women and their children who have no safe place to live comprehensive support.

“During their 15-month stay, our moms receive pre- and post-natal care, participate in life skill classes five days per week, attend parenting classes, earn their GED, secure full-time employment, purchase a vehicle and escrow $10,000-$15,000. At the end of this 15-month program, residents transition to independent living with their child(ren),” Executive Director Kay Trattles said in a news release.

Rising rent in Baldwin County has made independent living increasingly difficult for graduates, many of whom lack family support. More than half of the mothers served by Mary’s Shelter spent part of their childhood in foster care, and many have family members or partners with a history of incarceration. Government-subsidized housing exists, but waiting lists are years long and often closed.

Mary’s Village aims to bridge that gap with two-year transitional housing that leads to home ownership. Residents pay a monthly program fee that is held in escrow. At the end of two years, they will have accumulated an additional $16,800. Combined with savings from Mary’s Haven, graduates could have $27,000 to $32,000 for a home down payment. The program also partners with local banks and nonprofit organizations to provide credit counseling, budgeting skills and home maintenance education.

“While the Village is a transitional housing program, it is not just a transitional program,” Trattles said. “It is ridiculous to believe that if someone cannot afford rent in 2026, that by giving them income-based transitional living, they will miraculously be able to afford rent at full rate in a one or two year time period. The most important portion of the Mary’s Village program is that it culminates in home ownership.”

In the past five years, average rent in Baldwin County has nearly doubled, highlighting the urgency of permanent housing solutions. Mary’s Village represents a long-term strategy to break cycles of poverty and housing instability for vulnerable mothers and their children.

For more information or to support the program, contact madisoncorl@maryssheltergulfcoast.org.