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.”

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.”

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.”

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.

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. 

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: