St. Margaret's House

Opened June 1990 — the day center for women and children

Founding: St. Margaret's House began in a deacon's observation: the Reverend Sarah Tracy, of the Episcopal Cathedral of St. James, saw women downtown with nowhere to go during the day, and in 1990 she and others at the cathedral envisioned a day shelter for women and children. It opened in June 1990 in an unused building belonging to the cathedral — the old Peterson printing building at 117 North Lafayette Boulevard, let to the House for a dollar a year — and, by Today's Catholic's account of the founding, more than two weeks passed before the first guest, a single mother who needed to do her laundry, was brave enough to walk in; four days later she asked to volunteer. The House is named for St. Margaret of Scotland, the eleventh-century queen known for care of the poor.

Course: It has remained a day center — meals, showers, laundry, clothing, classes, and company — for women and children in poverty, about a quarter of its regular clients homeless, in Notre Dame's 2017 account. Kathy Schneider served as executive director for twenty-six years. In 2021 its 161 volunteers served 1,200 guests and 29,000 meals, in Today's Catholic's figures. Its own current account counts more than 1,000 women a year and an average of seventy a day. In 2026 the House undertook a 7,500,000-dollar renovation expanding its building by half — construction began in May 2026, with completion expected by the end of summer 2027 and the center operating meanwhile from the cathedral's basement, back where it began. Katie Elliott is executive director in the South Bend Tribune's February 2026 account.

Sources:

1. University of Notre Dame, news account, 2 November 2017 — the 1990 founding by members of the Episcopal Diocese of Northern Indiana and the Cathedral of St. James; the Lafayette Boulevard facility; a quarter of clients homeless; Kathy Schneider, executive director.
2. Today's Catholic, 22 November 2022 — Deacon Sarah Tracy's vision; the June 1990 opening and the first guest; the 2021 figures of 161 volunteers, 1,200 guests and 29,000 meals; the S.E.L.F. program.
3. Episcopal Diocese of Northern Indiana archives (USC Scalar) — the 1990 envisioning at the Cathedral of St. James and the cathedral's building leased to the House.
4. South Bend Tribune, 16 February 2026 — the dollar-a-year Peterson building; the 7,500,000-dollar renovation and the entrance move; Katie Elliott, executive director; the Winter Walk.
5. St. Margaret's House (stmargaretshouse.org) — more than 1,000 women a year, an average of seventy a day; construction begun May 2026; the move-in expected by the end of summer 2027.