PLATINUM2023

HOUSE OF REFUGE INC

Every family deserves a home

Mesa, AZ   |  www.houseofrefuge.org

Mission

House of Refuge is a faith-based, non-profit organization helping homeless families in crisis by providing transitional housing and supportive services that assist participants as they strive towards self-sufficiency and seek to obtain permanent housing.

Notes from the nonprofit

The one thing we want everyone to know is that we don't serve a "certain type of people." No one is immune from tragedy and loss such as: * Domestic Violence - when it's no longer safe to continue living in your housing * Economic Hardships - when job loss, poor health, or other emergencies mean you cannot continue to pay for your housing * Increasing Costs - when you cannot continue to find housing you can afford * Death, divorce, or break-up - when the person who paid for your housing is no longer in the picture * Fire, flood, or other disaster - when your housing is literally gone The only difference between our residents and the rest of us is that they did not have sufficient resources to deal with their losses without our assistance. They exhausted their savings and had no remaining friends or family on whom they could rely for ongoing help.

Ruling year info

1991

President and CEO

Ms. Kayla Kolar

Main address

6935 E Williams Field Rd

Mesa, AZ 85212 USA

Show more contact info

EIN

86-0662244

NTEE code info

Homeless Services/Centers (P85)

Low-Cost Temporary Housing (includes Youth Hostels) (L40)

Employment Procurement Assistance and Job Training (J20)

IRS filing requirement

This organization is required to file an IRS Form 990 or 990-EZ.

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Communication

Programs and results

What we aim to solve

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

The problem House of Refuge works to address is HOMELESSNESS. According to a recent 3TV/CBS 5 news report airing on 3/11/22, homelessness in Arizona has increased by 35% in the last two years – with more than 5,000 persons experiencing un-sheltered homelessness in Maricopa County in January 2022. Unfortunately, current record-breaking rental increases will certainly lead to ongoing increases in the number of families who can no longer afford their housing. All too often, poverty, domestic violence, and family homelessness are experienced as a repetitive cycle - continually being passed down as a legacy of misery from one generation to the next. In addition to a roof overhead, families experiencing homelessness have a critical need for the education, employment, and life-skills needed to break the cycle and change the trajectory of their lives.

Our programs

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?

Transitional Housing for Families

House of Refuge is a faith-based, non-profit 501(c)(3) that provides supportive services and transitional housing to homeless families. House of Refuge is a work program with case management services, employment support and transitional housing.

Population(s) Served
Families
Homeless people

Where we work

Awards

Disaster Response Award 2021

Gilbert Chamber of Commerce

Our results

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.

Total number of clients experiencing homelessness

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Population(s) Served

Families, Economically disadvantaged people, Homeless people

Related Program

Transitional Housing for Families

Type of Metric

Output - describing our activities and reach

Direction of Success

Holding steady

Number of food donation partners

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Related Program

Transitional Housing for Families

Type of Metric

Input - describing resources we use

Direction of Success

Holding steady

Number of people within the organization's service area accessing food aid

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Population(s) Served

Families, Economically disadvantaged people, Homeless people

Type of Metric

Output - describing our activities and reach

Direction of Success

Increasing

Number of volunteers

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Population(s) Served

Families, Economically disadvantaged people, Homeless people

Related Program

Transitional Housing for Families

Type of Metric

Input - describing resources we use

Direction of Success

Increasing

Context Notes

Besides the loyal volunteers we gratefully rely upon each year - in November, 2022, hundreds of skilled volunteers participated in special projects coordinated by Valley Partnership and HomeAid.

Total number of volunteer hours contributed to the organization

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Related Program

Transitional Housing for Families

Type of Metric

Input - describing resources we use

Direction of Success

Increasing

Context Notes

As noted above, in November 2022, Valley Partnership and HomeAid coordinated on-site projects to upgrade and beautify our campus. - which caused an increase in the number of our volunteers & hours.

Number of backpacks filled with school supplies distributed

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Related Program

Transitional Housing for Families

Type of Metric

Output - describing our activities and reach

Direction of Success

Increasing

Number of snacks served for students participating in programs

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Related Program

Transitional Housing for Families

Type of Metric

Output - describing our activities and reach

Direction of Success

Increasing

Average length of stay (in months)

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Related Program

Transitional Housing for Families

Type of Metric

Output - describing our activities and reach

Direction of Success

Holding steady

83,274 Bed nights for transitional housing provided. 403 Individual adults and children receiving wrap-around supportive services. 131 Families rescued from homelessness

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Related Program

Transitional Housing for Families

Type of Metric

Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues

Direction of Success

Holding steady

Our Sustainable Development Goals

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.

Goals & Strategy

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.

Charting impact

Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.

We aim to break the cycle of homelessness and domestic violence for families with minor children.

House of Refuge provides housing situated in a peaceful neighborhood of 88 single-family homes. In addition to safe, comfortable housing we provide wrap-around support services to help residents:

• obtain the food, clothing, furnishings, and household items needed to make a house a home,
• begin to recover from trauma and address their root causes of homelessness,
• work to improve income and become self-sufficient,
• and successfully graduate in to stable housing.

House of Refuge provides transitional housing and wrap-around supportive services.

We help homeless families with minor children transition from homelessness to self-sufficiency.

House of Refuge provides housing situated in a peaceful drug-free alcohol-free neighborhood of 88 single-family homes. In addition to safe, comfortable housing we provide wrap-around support services to help residents:

• obtain the food, clothing, furnishings, and household items needed to make a house a home,
• begin to recover from trauma and address their root causes of homelessness,
• work to improve income and become self-sufficient,
• and successfully graduate in to stable housing.

Case Managers help families create a workable plan to rebuild their lives by addressing the underlying causes of their homelessness and gaining stability.

The Education and Employment Specialist helps residents plan to increase their education level and/or improve their income.

Onsite classes help residents build skills such as financial literacy, resume building, interview skills, parenting classes and more.

Working closely with each individual to develop a unique plan for them to addresses their needs is what makes us successful. We are able to walk each step of the way with them until they are ready to stand on their own and graduate to their own safe stable housing.

We are now in our 26th year and have a consistent success rate of 82-85% of families graduating into permanent housing without further intervention.

We are seeing past residents going on to succeed in the medical field, banking industry, corporate levels at businesses, small business owners, and other fields. We are thrilled to have them come back to tell us about what House of Refuge meant to them and to give back to help current residents.

How we listen

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.

done We shared information about our current feedback practices.
  • How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?

    To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals

  • Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?

    We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We take steps to get feedback from marginalized or under-represented people, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We look for patterns in feedback based on demographics (e.g., race, age, gender, etc.), We look for patterns in feedback based on people’s interactions with us (e.g., site, frequency of service, etc.), We engage the people who provide feedback in looking for ways we can improve in response, We act on the feedback we receive, We tell the people who gave us feedback how we acted on their feedback, We ask the people who gave us feedback how well they think we responded

  • What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?

    It is difficult to get the people we serve to respond to requests for feedback, The people we serve tell us they find data collection burdensome

Financials

HOUSE OF REFUGE INC
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Operations

The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.

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lock

Connect with nonprofit leaders

Subscribe

Build relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.

  • Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
  • Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
  • Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations

Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.

HOUSE OF REFUGE INC

Board of directors
as of 06/29/2023
SOURCE: Self-reported by organization
Board chair

Megan Ruffentine

BMO Bank

Term: 2023 - 2024

Barbara Guy

ProSmart Realty

Audrey Alfano

Mercedes-Benz of Gilbert

Don Bird

US Air Force, Retired

Yira Brimage

Gilbert Park University

Kayla Kolar

House of Refuge

Mark Powell

Fairway Mortgage

Julissa Ricks

BriComp IT Consulting Services

Megan Ruffentine

BMO Private Bank

Marty Tomljenovic

Marty's Event Planning

Kenneth Weber

FDIC, retired

Sally Harrison

Mesa Chamber of Commerce

Jan Newton

Nothing Bundt Cakes

Susan Stephenson

Arizona State University

Meredith Hestand

Dignity Health

Board leadership practices

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.

  • Board orientation and education
    Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes
  • CEO oversight
    Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes
  • Ethics and transparency
    Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes
  • Board composition
    Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes
  • Board performance
    Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Yes

Organizational demographics

SOURCE: Self-reported; last updated 6/29/2023

Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.

Leadership

The organization's leader identifies as:

Race & ethnicity
White/Caucasian/European
Gender identity
Female

Race & ethnicity

Gender identity

No data

 

No data

Sexual orientation

No data

Disability

No data