Roxbury, MA – May 4, 2021 – Horizons for Homeless Children, a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the lives of young homeless children and their families, has opened the doors to The Edgerley Family Horizons Center—located in a state-of-the-art, 211,000-square-foot building in Roxbury. The new Center stands to support and improve the education, health and well-being of Boston’s homeless families by providing on-site early education programs as well as access to a variety of social services to help parents navigate the many complexities of homelessness.

The Edgerley Family Horizons Center provides a dynamic space to address the growing issue of family homelessness in Massachusetts—since 2008, the state has experienced some of the highest increases in family homelessness in the country. The Center will enable Horizons to:

• Serve 30% more children—going from 175 to 225—and families in a space designed to better meet their needs with a room for hands-on STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) learning activities, an art zone, a well-equipped library and gross motor areas for active indoor play
• Provide children with outdoor play areas designed with the help of an occupational therapist to further enhance their development
• Improve programming for the community and the families served with space to provide more workshops for families on topics such as financial literacy, job preparation, and nutritional cooking, as well as social services that make coordination and access better for families
• Ensure financial health and long-term stability of Horizons, by improving financial sustainability, allowing for greater operational efficiencies and reducing our cost to serve each child

The building will be an asset to the Jackson Square neighborhood and will house 400 jobs brought to Roxbury by building tenants, including the Department of Children & Families, YouthBuild and Healthcare for the Homeless, where families can access full-service family medicine and behavioral health services.

“The Edgerley Family Horizons Center will improve the lives of children experiencing homelessness by giving them access to beautiful, safe spaces where they can learn, play, and gain access to much-needed programming, like STEM, literacy, and more,” said Kate Barrand, president and CEO of Horizons for Homeless Children. “We are so grateful to those who have supported this endeavor and invested in our vision to provide many of our city’s at-risk children with the high-quality early education they deserve, alongside family services that will enable parents to lift themselves up and out of financial insecurity.”

The building is named in honor of long-time, loyal supporters Sandy and Paul Edgerley. In addition to the Edgerley family, the new space is made possible by many generous donors to the capital campaign, many of whom have been long-term supporters of Horizons and have witnessed the impact of their programs. In addition to state-of-the-art classroom space,

Horizons’ new home will include The Liberty Mutual Community Room, The Mazzella Family Preschool Playground and Eisenson Family Infant Playground, The Shapiro Preschool Suite, The Hawk Foundation STEM Room, The Frederick W. Worcester Library, and Cabot Corporation’s Family Welcome area. The space can be viewed online in this virtual tour.

This facility is a unique public/private joint venture between Horizons and WaterMark Development.

About Horizons for Homeless Children Horizons for Homeless Children is a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the lives of young homeless children and their families. Horizons provides high-quality early education, comprehensive family support services and opportunities for play to children living in shelter. Today, Horizons serves more than 1,500 young homeless children each week in Massachusetts through three early education centers and more than 90 shelter-based Playspaces. For more information about Horizons for Homeless Children, please visit: www.horizonschildren.org.

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Media Contact:
Megan Nealon
V2 Communications for Horizons for Homeless Children
617-426-2222
horizons@v2comms.com