Center faces $300,000 funding gap
By DEBORAH MARTINEZ MARTINEZ
Mariposa Center for Safety was denied funding from Pueblo City Council despite being invited by Mayor Heather Graham to apply, according to Nicole Ferguson, executive director.
“Our budget is around two million dollars for all four of our service areas,” she said. “We applied to the city for $65,000.”
The Mariposa Center houses Teresa’s Place to facilitate court-ordered supervised visits and exchanges, the Runaway & Homeless Youth Shelter, the Domestic Violence Shelter and Education programs.
In 2024, the Mariposa Center provided 4,608 shelter nights. Their 20-person staff provide such services as safety plan creation, case management, a secure location for housing victims of domestic violence, sexual assault and human trafficking.
Staff help to connect the survivors to education, victim advocacy and community partners such as Health Solutions Mental Health Services, Catholic Charities and United Way.
“We, of course, offer the emergency shelter piece, but also have relocation services, and emergency services such as supplying basic needs in crisis such as food and clothing,” Ferguson stated. “We are advocates for the client and help survivors access resources. Staff are the backbone for the 24-hour emergency hotline at 719-545-8195.”
The Mariposa Center is in the old location of the YWCA, at 801 N. Santa Fe Ave. The center still accepts donations (not clothes) at the office but has a list online at mariposacenterforsafety.org/support-us through the Amazon wishlist. Some surprising donations needed besides the hygiene items, towels, bedding are 55-gallon heavy duty trash bags, toasters, fans, adult and children’s luggage.
Ferguson says, “Just imagine yourself kicked out of your house with nothing and on the street. What would you need?”
“We also need help for a $300,000 operating budget gap. You can donate on the website or at the office.”
YWCA in Pueblo dates back 110 years.
From the Mariposa website: “The YWCA Pueblo first began to take shape in the minds of a small group of forward-thinking women on an autumn day in 1914. Initially this group of women set up a home and cafeteria for women in the Kenwood Hotel on what is now 219 West 3rd Street. The hotel served as “a home away from home” for women who came to Pueblo in search of work or a place to live while their husbands served our country during World War I.
“On June 3, 1921, a devastating flood swept through Pueblo destroying much of downtown, including the Kenwood Hotel and a year later the YWCA acquired the current building located at the corner of 8th and Santa Fe. In 1978, the YWCA Pueblo followed the lead of many of the YWCAs in the United States and converted from a home for women to a Domestic Violence Crisis Shelter.”
In August 2021, the YWCA Board of Directors voluntarily left the national affiliation of the YWCA so the organization could focus on local needs with a local mission. The name was officially changed to Mariposa Center for Safety in March 2023.
