May and June are a time for reflection for the Monadnock Area Transitional Shelter (MATS) board. As we review the past year, the board remembers MATS is more than a temporary shelter. For individuals experiencing homelessness, this place offers security, motivation and a chance for a new beginning.
At MATS, our mission is to empower individuals experiencing homelessness by providing safe housing, compassionate support and vital referral services. We are dedicated to raising community awareness about the realities of homelessness and advocating for lasting solutions that foster dignity, stability and hope.
For 35 years, MATS has pursued that mission. A devoted volunteer board and a caring, skilled staff carry this work forward. Our two staff members guide residents as they work toward stability, employment, housing, education, budgeting, transportation, health care, child care and legal services. Even after participants move into stable jobs and long-term housing, MATS remains a resource, helping them hold on to the progress they have worked to achieve.
In 2025, MATS received more than 20 applications and responded to more than 200 calls from agencies and people seeking shelter or other resources. Families and individuals spent 3,846 nights in safe housing, nights of rest, relief and security when they did not have to wonder where they would sleep. This allowed seven families (11 adults, 15 children) and three single women to achieve complete housing stability. MATS also helped 12 former participants maintain stable housing. Most encouragingly, every participant served over the past five years has remained housed.
MATS has provided shelter to more than 463 individuals since its establishment in 1991. The average stay ranges from four months to more than a year, time that allows people to rebuild, regroup and move forward with confidence. With our help, individuals in MATS’ three apartments learn to manage their money, pay off debts, arrange child care, apply for public benefits and join housing waiting lists. They transfer to MATS’ two-family home once they are ready. There, they foster greater independence as they await permanent housing.
The shortage of affordable housing for larger families who need three bedrooms is one of the greatest challenges facing the people we serve. MATS, alongside other local organizations, continues to support those on the verge of homelessness, but vacancies are difficult to find. One family of six has now been with us for more than two years as they search for a permanent home. Their experience is a powerful reminder that the path out of homelessness is not always quick, but it is more bearable when a caring community stands beside them.
Recently, our program director helped several people find homes in Vose Farm Residences, reducing their immediate need for emergency or transitional shelter. This year, we hope to expand our prevention work by assisting people who are temporarily unhoused but still reasonably stable, helping them secure permanent housing before their circumstances become unmanageable. These small, meaningful actions have the power to alter a person’s life path.
Like many organizations, MATS faces rising operating expenses. Our budget has seen an average annual growth of 12.5% for the last five years. Because we choose not to rely on government funding, our work depends on the generosity of donors, grants and community fundraising efforts. In 2025, we repaired and renovated our two buildings, redesigned our website to better share our mission and expanded our social media outreach. This community’s ongoing faith in MATS facilitated these substantial investments.
If you want to help someone take the next step toward housing stability, your support provides safe housing, practical help and a path forward. Every act of generosity makes a difference. To find out more about our efforts or to make a donation, please visit our website. And if someone you know needs help moving beyond homelessness, we are here to help.
Elizabeth Goodhue is a board member at the Monadnock Area Transitional Shelter (MATS).
