13abc: Leading Families Home acquires Family House shelter
November 20, 2025
Leading Families Home acquires Family House shelter
TOLEDO, Ohio (WTVG) - The Family House shelter will continue operating after Leading Families Home acquired the location, receiving nearly $300,000 from city council.
The Family House had been operating in the red for over a year and was at risk of closure, Leading Families Home executive director Jennifer Jacobs said.
Without the funding, the shelter would have closed and put over 100 residents back on the streets.
“It helps with the transition period because we’re waiting for the grants to be transferred over to the Leading Families Home name. We can’t allocate salaries; there are many things we can’t do until these transitions take place,” said Jacobs.
Brittany Perkins, a resident at Family House, said she doesn’t know where she would be without the shelter. Perkins said she came from a domestic violence situation and stays at the shelter with her one-year-old son, Jasper.
“I am extremely grateful,” Perkins said.
The shelter’s family focus allows Perkins and her son to stay together.
“They’re able to give you a single room for you and your family to be in. They’re giving you everything, bed sheets and all that. They’re giving you a new opportunity,” Perkins said.
The merger creates the largest organization in the area dedicated to serving families in crisis.
“We’ll have room for about 204 extra beds in the community to help families,” Jacobs said.
Perkins said she’s set up with a place to rent and is just waiting for a unit to become available.
Source: https://www.13abc.com/2025/11/15/leading-families-home-acquires-family-house-shelter/
A Partnership Built on Trust and Outcomes Candace Buckley’s support for Leading Families Home stretches back more than five years administering grants, and then serving as the Deputy Director at the Toledo Lucas County Homelessness Board. Her role required strict oversight and accountability. What she witnessed was an organization consistently rising to the moment. “I knew they were a good organization because their end-users told me,” she said. “Working at the Board, you’d get calls daily, but the calls about Leading Families Home were compliments. Families would name staff directly, thanking them for compassion and care. That said everything to me.” A Century of Impact, Culture, and Stability At the time, Candace was helping expand homelessness system funding from 11 grants to more than 50, ensuring agencies had the resources to meet growing needs. Through that work, she watched Leading Families Home establish itself as a critical anchor, uniquely focused on supporting families through emergency shelter and long-term housing pathways. “You don’t survive for 100 years in this community unless you’re innovative, resilient, compassionate, and collaborative,” she said. “Leading Families Home is all of those things.” Candace credits their culture and staff as core strengths: people who show up with pride, call community members by name, and make sure every family feels seen and respected. “No one wants to be in an emergency shelter. But Leading Families Home leads with dignity and focuses on hope and healing. They meet each person where they are.” A Success Story That Defines Why the Work Matters Candace has witnessed many success stories over the years but carries one specific story with her: a woman she knew personally who entered the shelter system after a sudden decline in health and stability. Once a high-earning corporate professional and veteran, she experienced a rapid and traumatic shift in circumstances. Leading Families Home became a place of trust, connection, and emergency respite. “She was determined to rebuild, and she did so quickly,” Candace said. “Leading Families Home didn’t define her by her crisis. They understood her situation, treated her with dignity, and helped her stabilize. That experience changed her trajectory.” Intentional Case Management That Drives Housing Stability From Candace’s perspective, Leading Families Home’s strength lies in its intentionality. Their robust case management ensures families remain supported long after they leave the shelter, which is a key reason so many remain stably housed. She also believes the organization’s strong relationships with landlords are another major differentiator. These relationships help families overcome stigma and secure healthy housing in a market that is increasingly limited and competitive. Strategic Alignment Across Systems and Community Needs Candace sees alignment between Leading Families Home’s mission and her own work leading the Toledo Lead Resource Center. She values Leading Families Home’s commitment to placing families in safe and healthy environments, especially critical in a region where aging housing stock and environmental risks create real barriers to long-term stability. She emphasized that safe, healthy, and affordable housing stability is foundational to economic mobility. Looking Forward: Strengthening Families and Toledo’s Future Candace hopes to see continued investment in Leading Families Home and envisions future opportunities to expand services, including workforce development, childcare support, and clinical partnerships. “Supporting Leading Families Home is supporting Toledo’s mission to help families do better,” she said. Her belief in the organization’s impact is clear, grounded in years of firsthand experience: “Every single family served by Leading Families Home is worth it, no matter their background or what brought them there. Leading Families Home sees people first, not their crisis. That’s why their work matters.”
About 75 volunteers participated in the first-ever UpTown Cleanup Day on Friday. Beyond the obvious goal of helping one of Toledo’s near-downtown neighborhoods make more strides toward a comeback, the event had a more serious objective for some of the participants: keeping an eye out for homeless people in need of services. The Toledo Lucas County Homelessness Board was one of the event partners for that reason. It viewed the cleanup as a chance to become more visible and possibly connect more directly with those in need, said Julie Embree, the board’s executive director. “There’s been an increase in the number of folks on the street, with the economy the way it is and the lack of affordable housing,” she said. “We want to provide grace to our homeless folks.” Toledo’s regular number of 588 shelter beds are at capacity, Ms. Embree said. “There are more than 250 people on wait lists now,” she said. Sandra De Steno, United Way of Greater Toledo 211 director, said that wait list includes about 175 families. The last time the need was this great was during the coronavirus pandemic. She said relief came back then in the form of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. Also called the coronavirus stimulus package, ARPA provided $1.9 trillion in federal money to help cities nationwide. Now, there are “fewer and fewer resources to stabilize them,” Ms. De Steno said of homeless people. “There’s a lot of people focused on [donating] food right now, but food is only one of the many things that people need,” she said. Lisa Pengov, the homelessness board’s operations manager, said the problem “keeps getting worse.” “We have a lot of encampments popping up right now,” she said. “Homeless individuals are staying out on the street because all of the shelters are full. The encampments are getting larger and larger, and we’re getting more people on the street.” The event was organized by ConnecToledo, in partnership with Downtown Toledo Improvement District. Betsy Ujvagi, ConnecToledo office manager, agreed the cleanup was a good “visibility opportunity” for the homelessness board to help expand its reach. “We’re in a different environment this year,” Ms. Embree said. “We anticipate the number of people we see on the street is going to grow. Let’s find some grace and connection for our unsheltered folks. We’re asking our businesses for help to do that. As much as anything, Ms. Embree said, the UpTown district cleanup was an event “to showcase how we can work together and find solutions.” She and others said they hope it expands to other neighborhood districts. They saw Friday’s event as the kickoff for multiple cleanups in the spring and fall of 2026. One of the many other groups involved was Keep Toledo/Lucas County Beautiful. Its executive director, Adam Cassi, said that group provided gloves, bags, litter tongs, and other supplies. Volunteers met at 10 a.m. at UpTown Green, 1904 Madison Ave., and spent a couple of hours picking up litter. “It’s a way to beautify our city, but it also shows people are dedicated to making our city a good place to live,” Mr. Cassi said. He said cleanups are good for residents and good for the business community. “There’s a lot of research that says once an area is clean it’s easier to keep it that way,” Mr. Cassi said. “It shows that we take pride in our city, and that littering is socially unacceptable.” One of the people picking up trash was Johnathan Nichols, 35, Family House marketing and development director. “We’ve seen an increased need and we continue to rally for community support to serve the families,” Mr. Nichols said. Another volunteer, Corey Julius, 34, works at the nearby Toledo Metro Federal Credit Union, 1212 Adams St., as its vice president of lending. “I want to give back to the community. Helping to clean up is an easy way for us average people to chip in a bit,” Mr. Julius said. “I was pleasantly surprised to see the turnout. Honestly, there are more people than I expected to be here.” First Published November 14, 2025, 4:30 p.m. Source: https://www.toledoblade.com/local/city/2025/11/14/first-uptown-cleanup-serves-dual-purpose/stories/20251114122
For more than a decade, Ron Ranallo has helped shape the mission and impact of Leading Families Home. His involvement began long before the organization was known by its current name. He served on the board of FOCUS and later supported the transition when FOCUS merged with Beach House in 2016. The merger was not simply a structural change. It allowed families experiencing homelessness to access multiple forms of support under one roof. “I have been part of this organization through five executive directors and a lot of change, but the mission has never shifted,” Ron said. “We are here to end homelessness, or at least significantly reduce it, and we are doing the work every day.” A Personal Call to Serve Ron’s path to LFH began during his career at Owens Corning, where he was asked to lead the company’s United Way initiative. He spent years engaging with local nonprofits, learning about community needs, and seeing firsthand how many families in Northwest Ohio were struggling. That experience permanently changed his perspective. “Once you understand the reality of homelessness in our community, you cannot unsee it,” he said. “It became clear this was something I needed to give my time to.” He later joined the board of the Aurora Project at the request of a colleague, which eventually led to his involvement with FOCUS and then Leading Families Home. Today, he serves as treasurer and a member of the finance committee. Why LFH’s Model Works Ron believes the heart of LFH is its continuum of care. The organization doesn’t only offer shelter. It provides a path to stability, with wraparound services designed to help families rebuild and remain housed. “We do not just give someone a bed and send them back into the world,” Ron said. “We stabilize families. We subsidize rent. We make sure children can stay in the same schools. Parents receive employment coaching and support. It’s about long-term success, not a temporary solution.” Much of that work depends on experienced case managers and social workers who guide families through the process. Many have been with LFH for years, offering consistency and compassionate care. “They are the heart of this organization,” he said. “These are high-stress jobs, and the people who stay do it because they are called to this work. They believe in the mission.” Breaking the Cycle for Children If you were to ask Ron about LFH, he would return again and again to one point: the children experiencing homelessness. He would emphasize that when a family loses housing, the instability affects everything from education to emotional development. “No child chooses homelessness,” he said. “It is traumatic for adults and even more traumatic for children. When you provide stability, counseling, and a chance to stay in school, that is how you break the cycle. You give children a chance.” To Ron, that is where LFH makes its most meaningful impact. Housing is not the finish line. It is the foundation that allows families to rebuild. Stories of Transformation Some of the most powerful moments for Ron come from hearing directly from families who have gone through LFH programs. During fundraising events, former residents often share their stories of navigating crisis, finding stability, and rebuilding their lives. “These success stories are tragic, but also inspiring,” he said. “No two stories are the same, other than they ended up in a shelter. Hearing how far they have come is incredibly powerful.” One story stays with him. A former Beach House resident, who spent time in the shelter as a child, is now a business professional serving on the LFH board. “His story is full-circle,” Ron said. “He is successful, he is giving back, and it all started with the stability his family found here.” Homelessness is a Serious Community Issue That Requires Community Action Although LFH has made tremendous strides, Ron believes the scale of homelessness is far larger than most people realize. Hundreds of families in Northwest Ohio are currently unhoused, and that number is significantly underreported. “I wish more people understood the magnitude,” he said. “It is a gigantic number, and it is growing.” Ron believes the community can do better by working more collaboratively. Rather than many organizations working separately, he believes there should be more partnerships, shared resources, and streamlined services. “There needs to be more collaboration and fewer silos,” he said. “It is more efficient for donors and more effective for families.” Funding is another challenge, especially because nonprofits often receive grants through reimbursement-only models. The organization spends the money first, then waits to get it back. Ron sees unrestricted funding as essential to sustainability. “Unrestricted funding is critical,” he said. “It allows an organization to make strategic decisions and run its operations without waiting for reimbursement.” Why Volunteers Matter While financial support is important, Ron believes volunteering changes the way people see homelessness. It gives community members a firsthand understanding of who is being served and what they are overcoming. “When you volunteer, even for a short time, it becomes personal,” he said. “You see what is happening behind the curtain, and that is what hooks people. That is what hooked me.” Ron encourages anyone looking for purpose or connection to get involved. LFH offers opportunities for short-term, long-term, and group volunteering, all of which make a difference. Looking Ahead LFH is preparing for major growth as it acquires Family House and expands its capacity. This includes additional housing units, more behavioral health support, and a broader range of services designed to keep families stable long after they leave shelter. “That is the future,” he said. “Comprehensive services, continuity of care, and collaboration. We are moving in that direction, and it gives me hope.” After ten years of service, Ron remains committed, both personally and financially, to the mission. “I am proud of what we have built, and I am proud of the families who have worked so hard to rebuild their lives,” he said. “Ending homelessness is a big goal, and we cannot do it alone. But every family that finds stability is proof the mission matters. And that is what keeps me here.”
