While she was battling addiction, Ms. Nugent lived in the Family House shelter on Indiana Avenue, she said. She now works as a residential staff supervisor for Leading Families Home, which acquired the service organization in January.

“Giving back is the greatest thing you can do,” she said. “These are our neighbors. ... You don’t want them to slip and fall, you want to help them.”

Ms. Nugent was joined by Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz and other city leaders Thursday to celebrate Leading Families Home’s acquisition in January of Family House through a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the Indiana Avenue shelter.

“For many years, our organizations have operated side by side within the same space, working to help families,” said Jennifer Jacobs, executive director of Leading Families Home. “We are excited to say we are now operating together as one big family, united in our mission to serve families experiencing homelessness in our community.”

Ms. Jacobs said merging the two shelters will allow Leading Families Home to serve more than 1,000 people a year.

The acquisition was supported by $290,000 in funding from the city and a $20,000 Strategic Alliance Partnership Grant from the Greater Toledo Community Foundation.

“We save lives by allowing families to live here and regroup so that they can go out and be productive citizens and live the dream [in] the city of Toledo,” said City Councilman Cerssandra McPherson. 

Leading Families Home began as Beach Family Shelter in 1921 and has served hundreds of families throughout its tenure. Family House started as the Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance in 1985.

Rosalyn Clemens, director of the department of neighborhoods for the city of Toledo, said she was visited by leaders of Family House in November, who told her, “We think that we can be more impactful if we combine forces.”

She said it’s her job to help manage federal resources at a time in a country where those resources are dwindling.

“Nonprofits tend to be territorial,” Ms. Clemens said. “They work in their silos and as we deal with this issue of dwindling resources, we have to address how we can become more efficient with the resources that we have. 

“When they came to me that day and asked for $290,000 for this transition, it was just a no-brainer for me to [go] before council … and ask for this money because it was such a visionary move on their behalf,” she continued. “It was such an impactful thing to combine forces to be able to serve more people.”

The mayor shared the same sentiment. 

“It’s a difficult time in America right now for nonprofits, social service providers, frankly, like Family House,” Mr. Kapszukiewicz said. “It’s good if you’re Elon Musk and you need a tax break. It’s bad for everyone else. We have to have organizations step up to fill in the gap and that is what is happening here.”

First Published March 12, 2026, 6:07 p.m.