Q&A: Latoya Thomas, Director of Social Services, Marsha’s House

Before Project Renewal opened Marsha’s House in 2017, LGBTQI+ young adults experiencing homelessness in New York City did not have a shelter tailored to their needs. Five years later, Marsha’s House is still New York City’s only shelter for LGBTQI+ young adults, ages 18 to 30. As Pride Month kicks off, we spoke with Latoya Thomas, Director of Social Services at Marsha’s House and a proud member of the LGBTQI+ community herself. 

What does Pride Month mean to the Marsha’s House community? 

Pride is such a big deal here. In addition to the fact that we serve the LGBTQI+ community, we are named for Marsha P. Johnson, whose activism at Stonewall helped launch the first Pride celebrations. Stonewall, as well as other events, were always a way for the LGBTQI+ community to express to everyone how to include us in the conversation. It’s so important and affirming to have events and ideas around Pride because Marsha was a pioneer. She was about trying to bring humanity to individuals that are super marginalized. She opened her home and her heart to people trying to find their way and I think that’s why it’s so important to have that Pride highlighted here at Marsha’s House. 

What does Marsha’s House have planned for Pride Month? 

We are helping clients attend Pride events throughout the city. We also have several different agencies who will come celebrate and provide services to our clients, including Montefiore Medical Center and other partners. Our job is to facilitate and orchestrate how our clients can navigate these support systems and enter the warm embrace of other service providers. By doing this, we’re giving them the tools they need to be able to utilize these resources when they are no longer residents at Marsha’s House, when they transition into their own housing, whether it be independent or supportive. 

What are some of the services that Marsha’s House staff provides to clients? 

If you look at Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, you know that shelter is everything, so that’s the most important thing we provide initially. Next, we offer access to mental health services. We know that a high propensity of our clients have mental health challenges or traumas, and Marsha’s House is one of the first places where they obtain a psychiatric diagnosis and get mental health treatment. We also offer vocational services and are always trying to keep our clients abreast of information and training that happens across the city. That’s where you can see clients blossom and begin to support themselves. 

What makes working at Marsha’s House so fulfilling for you? 

I’m proud of the work we do at Marsha’s House. For someone like me in the LGBTQI+ community, I didn’t have a place like Marsha’s House to come to when I needed it. I often think about how having resources and a space which is affirming and supportive could have helped me, and now my work can change the trajectory of someone else’s life. Because of that, when I come

into work every day, my mission is to be what I needed at the time and what other people in the community need now. Recently, we had a client move into permanent supportive housing which we helped them to secure. And now that they are in a supportive space, they haven’t returned to Marsha’s House, and they are thriving, and that makes me proud to be a part of this community.