Gathering for Women

Night after night, she strategically positioned herself into her car, far more vertical than horizontal, and tucked in for sleep. She did this knowing that she would awaken with searing pain from the swelling in her feet and legs. Imagine never putting your legs up at night.

She could have gotten relief by staying at a local shelter. But she was too scared. Locking her car doors seemed less chancy than sleeping next to strangers.

She was 70-plus years old.

Then in May 2024, she found Gathering for Women (GFW), supported in part by funds from Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula’s Community Benefit program. She became a “guest” of the organization, and now has a home. Four walls instead of four car doors.

“. . . words can’t properly express how grateful and blessed I feel to have this group of women. I never thought I would be an older woman and homeless, but there I was,” she said in a thank-you letter to GFW.

She is one of about 400 women GFW helps annually. This year, she was one of 17 who found homes, some temporary, some permanent, but homes, nonetheless.

“More than 50 percent of our guests are over 50 years old,” says Staci Alziebler-Perkins, GFW executive director since 2019. “Many have lived on the Peninsula forever. But one health problem, or a divorce, a job loss, a terrible accident, and they lose everything.”

Shelter and support

Nationwide, nearly 60 percent of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck, according to studies, one crisis away from homelessness.

GFW has provided a respite in that storm for 11 years. A dining hall. Breakfast and lunch —20,000 meals a year. Hot showers. Clothes. Bingo. Movies. Parking lot laughter yoga. Holiday gatherings. Birthday celebrations.

“Some people said they haven’t celebrated in years,” says Alziebler-Perkins. “We make incredible meals. And if there are leftovers, we let them take them for the night. Over the weekend, they get big bags to take. Homelessness doesn’t end the minute they leave.”

Community Hospital, part of Montage Health, has helped in that effort, giving $107,500 since 2018. In 2024, the hospital provided $218.4 million in community benefit support to improve the health and lives of residents in Monterey County, partnering with 240 organizations like Gathering for Women.

“And the (hospital’s) rehabilitation department helped us with holiday backpacks two years in a row,” Alziebler-Perkins says, “and they said they would like to do something again this year.”

Looking to the future

This year, GFW added some significant real estate to its outreach. With a $1.3 million loan, the group purchased the lot next door to its center on El Dorado Street in Monterey. It plans an expansion and revitalization, including space for medical, dental, and mental health needs, and is preparing for a capital campaign in 2026.

“The only area now for guests to be is in the dining hall,” Alziebler-Perkins says. “It’s loud and crowded. Last year, we had 25 women a day on average. This year, it’s been between 45 to 50.”

Crowded or not, GFW has been a sanctuary, a lifeline, for so many women on the Peninsula.

“The supportive atmosphere from both other participants and case workers provided camaraderie that I never knew I needed,” a program client said. “I finally began to have hope that I would be OK, and that I would once again have a home, and productive life in society.  I wake up now rested and at ease.”

That kind of impact illustrates the important work of the Community Benefit funding and partnerships, says Michele Melicia Young, director of Montage Health Foundation, which oversees the program.

“As a local, nonprofit healthcare system, we invest beyond our walls, supporting organizations that strengthen well-being for individuals and families across Monterey County,” Young says. “When these organizations succeed, our whole community benefits.”

Learn more about Gathering for Women and about Community Hospital’s Community Benefit Program.