DECEMBER 2025: Pregnant women experiencing homelessness face challenges far beyond finding a place to live. Trauma,
poverty, limited education, and a lack of family support all increase their vulnerability.
Birth Haven, an independent nonprofit based in Newton, was created to help. The organization provides safe housing for pregnant women and girls in crisis, teaches essential life skills, and connects them with the resources they need to thrive.
In 2022, Birth Haven designed a program to help graduates of its residential program make a successful transition to independence. To launch this effort—called “Life After Birth Haven” or “Birth Haven II”—the organization needed funding. Impact100 Garden State stepped in with a $100,000 grant.
By the end of the grant period in July 2025, Birth Haven II had supported 9 mothers and 10 infants, all of whom moved from the residential facility into independent housing within New Jersey.
“The Impact100 Garden State grant has been pivotal in launching and sustaining the Birth Haven II pilot program,” the organization reports. “By covering rent and providing clinical in-home support, we are actively preventing family disruption and promoting long-term stability for young mothers and their children.”
With the pilot now complete and all milestones achieved, Birth Haven is incorporating key elements of Birth Haven II into its long-term operations.
The Birth Haven Experience
Most Birth Haven residents are women ages 17 to 21 who live on-site throughout their pregnancies and for six weeks postpartum. While in residence, they participate in a life-skills curriculum covering parenting, infant care, nutrition, home safety, child abuse prevention, and financial responsibility. Residents must also maintain full-time employment and save 65% of their earnings for future expenses.
For eligible graduates, Birth Haven II covers three months of rent and provides weekly in-home visits from a licensed clinical social worker for a full year. The social worker first helps each woman secure appropriate housing, then offers weekly counseling sessions focused on budgeting, childcare arrangements, parenting education, and career support. They also assess safety risks in the home and surrounding community.
“The weekly visits from the social worker made such a difference,” says one participant. “It wasn’t just about checking in. It felt like someone really cared and wanted to see us succeed.”
Participants also receive counseling on health and wellness, as well as access to job training, employment, and educational programs.
“I never imagined I’d be able to live on my own with my twins,” another mother shares. “Birth Haven II helped me take that step and feel like I could really make a life for us.”
For more information about Birth Haven, visit birthhaven.org.