SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2025, 10:10–10:50 A.M., meet in the St. Nicholas Building, just to the northing of the cathedral. (rescheduled from Jan. 12)

Between the 9 and 11 a.m. services on February 2, Dean Thomason will join representatives from Operation Nightwatch and lay leaders to formally bless the new Emergency Women’s Shelter on the Saint Mark’s Cathedral campus. The shelter is a partnership between Saint Mark's and Operation Nightwatch—street ministry in Seattle in which cathedral members also serve as volunteers—and will be called Donna Jean’s Place at Saint Mark’s, named in honor of Donna Jean Palmberg, whose late husband, Pastor Bud, founded Operation Nightwatch nearly 57 years ago. The shelter will serve up to twenty women nightly, and provide not only beds to sleep in, but showers, laundry, and lockers to store their belongings. There will also be a small clinical room for the women to receive medical and mental health care services. Gather in the space on the first floor of the St Nicholas Building following the 9 a.m. service—signage will guide you.

NOTE: Donations are still needed to help complete the facility. See the list of requests and ways to donate here. 

UPDATES (1/8):

• Build-out of the new shelter space is nearing completion now, and a work day to clean and set up the space for the women is scheduled for Saturday, January 25. Please contact Operation Nightwatch volunteer coordinator Michelle Aguilar Ramirez if you’d like to sign up for that work day, or to serve regularly once the women arrive in early February. UPDATE (1/14): The work party is now at capacity.
• The Blessing and Dedication of the Shelter has been rescheduled for Sunday February 2, 10:15–10:40 a.m., as part of an Open House that day running 9 a.m.–1 p.m. All are welcome.
• Our year-end appeal at Saint Mark’s for the shelter generated many much-needed hygiene products for the women to use, and cash donations totaling $28,696.50. Such generosity! These gifts will be used to furnish the shelter and help with operational support—which will cost about $1000 per woman per month. If you’ve not yet had a chance to give and would like to, you can do so here. (Select "New Emergency Women's Shelter" from the list of options.) Thank you!