Mary & Martha House, Inc.

About Us

Mary & Martha House has cared for abused and homeless women and their dependent children since 1982, when our three female founders recognized a need to help female farm workers who were victims of domestic violence.  Today we are the only residential shelter in south and east Hillsborough County (rural) that serves both homeless and abused women, providing emergency shelter in a environment of dignity, compassion and respect.

Rather than focusing on women who are chronicly homeless, mentally ill or in need of extensive drug treatment, Mary & Martha House strives to reach the growing number of women who are recently homeless or in danger of becoming homeless. These women need a safe environment and support services that will help them develop or re-establish personal and economic resources. To respond to this need, our organization provides:

1) Short-term emergency shelter designed to help women and children in immediate need of temporary shelter.

2) Longer-term transitional housing and support to help them gain the resources necessary to obtain permanent housing.

One of our goals is to stabilize families and move them into permanent housing. Our guests are required to seek employment and to utilize all available community resources to achieve self-sufficiency. Our thrift stores help us meet this goal by providing clients with on-the-job training and increasing their job readiness. Clients learn about retailing, customer service, marketing, sales, and merchandising. Mary & Martha House is a non-profit 501(c)(3) located in Ruskin, Florida. Since our inception, we've provided services for over 4,000 women and their children. We rely heavily on volunteers and donations to support our programs.