Maria Protopsaltis with Samuel’s House joined Good Morning Keys on Keys Talk 96.9/102.5FM this morning to talk about the organization.
Samuel’s House is a 501c3 nonprofit emergency homeless shelter for women and women with children.
Protopsaltis said, “We were founded in October 1999 by Elmira Leto. And at that time there was a huge need for women and children who were displaced by the closing of another shelter. So we’ve actually, since that time, we’ve continued to grow. In 2007 we built Cathy’s Hope, and then in 2010 we built Casa de Meredith. So it’s our hope to not only continue with this mission, but expanding eventually, but it’s a growing cause. It’s a growing concern. It ties directly with the shortage of affordable housing, and that, of course, that is affordable workforce housing. So there’s a lot of people who are struggling to find housing, even still or even maintain their housing as a result.”
The Polar Plunge was a recent fundraiser for Samuel’s House.
Protopsaltis said, “We want to thank our community, all those who contributed, all those who showed up, the brave souls that came out to plunge. There was 175 plungers. So it’s one of our largest events, even despite the true plunge conditions. So it was very, very exciting and actually we had a blast. It was so much fun.”
The Women of Integrity and Men of Valor dinner is coming up.
Protopsaltis said, “There are many components of this event, and it has become one of our signature events, and we’ve been providing services in the keys for 26 years. This is actually going to be our 23rd year, and the only time we’ve had interruption of the event was due to Hurricane or COVID. So that shows you how long running this event has been going. And one of the challenges that our board has is actually every year selecting. I mean, because we have so many incredible people in our community, we’re truly blessed. I think it’s one of the things that sets Key West and Monroe County apart. Truly, every year they have the task of selecting these incredible individuals and I have to say, I mean, it just amazes me every year, getting to know these individuals, learning more about them. I mean, we might know of them, but then we take it another level. We post their bio, we introduce them to the community, and then they get to, of course, come to this event, celebrate with their friends, their family and the community. So we’re really excited. Every year we strive to make it better and better, although what a challenge that can be, because every year is unique and magical in its own way.”
The dinner takes place on March 26.
Protopsaltis said, “One of our favorite parts is when the ladies of Samuel’s House courageously approach the podium and share their personal testimony about how Samuel’s House has impacted and changed their lives. So there’s not a dry eye in the house. I have to admit, I cry every time. We actually have an E blast that went out today through the chamber. You can click on that. You can also call us 305-296-0240, we’d be happy to help you. We’re aware that this is the nonprofit’s busiest time of year, and to answer some of our community’s requests, they said, well, we’re going to be out of town, or we’re going to be at other events. Is there another way we can support? So we created a sponsorship program where they can actually make a donation and sponsor a table, sponsor a couple meals for the ladies of Samuel’s House. There’s a few other options as well. We love our silent auction. We take a lot of pride and our board members have taken a lot of time with our auction and package things beautifully, but we’re asking our community if they’d like to donate, like artwork or jewelry or some of their merchandise, possibly gift certificates, we do a nice job of featuring everyone who donates in our auction. We thank them in our program, we thank them in our social media. We were always about gratitude, so we’re asking our community to get in touch with us, and we’ll be happy to make the process smooth. We’ll be happy to come and pick it up, facilitating that. If you can’t make it, there’s other ways to contribute. And please just get in touch with us. We’d love to hear from you. They can call me at the office, 305-296-0240, they can actually go to our website. Or they can send me an email. We’re very responsive, and we’ll get back to them right away. We’re blessed in our community to know so many incredible people, incredible community partners. It’s extraordinary, and it’s not found every day and in every place you go. We’re very grateful to be here, and we’re grateful for our ladies and our programs and the gentlemen in the family side, we’re grateful for the opportunity to serve, and that’s actually a part of our mission, and we’re happy to be able to do this work and provide this service. It really does take a village to do this work, so I just want to thank again our community. It takes each and every one of us to put forth the effort and continue to do the work that we do.”
For more information, click here: https://samuelshouse.org/