Who We Are

Holy Family Shelter, a program of Catholic Charities Indianapolis, addresses the increasing demand for emergency shelter in Indianapolis and the central Indiana area by providing residential services designed to move homeless families to self-sufficiency.  Holy Family Shelter has been in operation since 1984 having never closed its doors. Each night 55 to 85 individuals sleep safely within the walls of Holy Family Shelter.  The shelter has 22 private rooms where families can live for 30 to 45 days.  When demand exceeds room capacity, we must temporarily place families in the shelter’s living room until a private room becomes available or other arrangements can be made. The use of this “emergency overflow plan” has become a regular occurrence as we try to meet the current need for services.  Our shelter provides emergency housing for approximately 1,000 individuals (or 300 families) each year, over half (600) of which are homeless children. The shelter is capable of admitting families on a 24-hour basis.