Our Vision & Mission
Babies of Homelessness is an emergency – crisis response team. We mobilize the community with volunteers to bring basic needs essentials to children living in tent cities, encampments, shelters or in their cars. We aim to provide hope to families and connect them with additional resources.
Our goal is to remove the stigma “homelessness” carries, by shedding light on the youngest and most vulnerable subjected to homelessness.
Our Story
As a child who experienced homelessness growing up, Babies of Homelessness founder Star Lalario is passionate about the homeless crisis in Seattle and how it affects the children. Star has been an active volunteer within Women & Children Shelters for years, but when a news story uncovered the awful truth that there were actually babies and children “living” in homeless encampments/unsheltered, naturally she was compelled to act and do something.
Knowing that children at such a young age are not capable for themselves to obtain life’s most basic needs and necessities to survive; nor are they capable of walking out of unsafe environments, Star was determined to go find them. She joined the Union Gospel Mission Search & Rescue team, specifically looking to offer basic essentials to the children. This became Babies of Homelessness in October of 2016.
Star’s experience is indicative of the larger crisis in Seattle. While Seattle is abundant with social services geared to help the adult and young adult populations experiencing homelessness, there are very few – if any – services geared to help babies and children who are homelessness.
What BOH Provides
We focus on the following basic needs items which we believe are
fundamental and the most important survival basics for a family in order to overcome many of the detrimental effects of poverty and being homeless.
- Diapers
- Wipes
- Baby Formula/Cereal
- Toddler-friendly snacks / Food
- Warm Weather Clothing / Socks / Jackets / Shoes* (occasional during extreme winter months)
Partner With Us
Seattle homeless population is third largest in the U.S., after LA and NYC. In Seattle and King County, the number of people counted in families with kids in this area was one of the highest in the country in 2018.
Per a 2017 Seattle/King County Count Us In report, there are an estimated 2,700 families with children classified as homeless. This does not include the numbers of families in surrounding counties.
To expand our mission to more families in King and incorporate Snohomish & Pierce counties, we rely on community partners.
Aside from one paid staff, BOH is purely operated by a team of dedicated volunteers and donor-funded! With very small operational fees, 92% of donations go directly to families in our community!
Need Help?
If you or someone you know is a family in need of assistance, call (866) 44 BOH HELP or (866) 442-6443