HISTORY

Named after its former occupant, the Irma Gary House, became the cornerstone of New Connections. The first resident was welcomed in the fall of 2001. The six-bedroom home accommodates one resident manager and five women, with residents typically moving to more permanent housing within six months.

New Connections achieved 501(c)(3) status, transitioning smoothly to become an independent nonprofit while preserving our longstanding relationships. Committed to broadening our support base to embrace greater diversity, we have successfully expanded our network to include a wider range of faith-based and secular agencies throughout the county. This expansion enriches the support we provide, benefiting those we serve with connections to a broader array of resources.

We collaborated with several other agencies to establish Pierce CPTS (Community Partnership for Transition Services), a coalition dedicated to leveraging resources and promoting policies that support successful community reintegration after incarceration. New Connections took on the role of fiscal agent for this group and co-sponsored the 2013 Reentry Conference in partnership with Pierce CPTS and Puget Sound University’s Race and Pedagogy Initiative.

Pierce County Jail (just 4 blocks away from Irma’s Place) regularly releases people to the streets of Tacoma at 5am with nowhere to go and no access to phone or transportation services. We began meeting individuals upon release and also small pre-release groups at the jail to offer resource mentoring and printed resource materials specific to Pierce County.

Thanks to the generosity of Immanuel Presbyterian Church, our staff and volunteers no longer need to hold meetings and complete computer work in the dining room at Irma’s Place. IPC provides the office space at no charge in support of the work of New Connections.

As affordable housing dwindles, formerly incarcerated people experience increased difficulty in finding permanent housing. We partner with the Evergreen Empowerment Group to assist people who face legal barriers to permanent housing at the stability site and in the broader community. We also collaborate with other agencies as part of the Tacoma Pierce County Coalition to End Homelessness.