Horizon House Blog

Compass Housing Alliance has named a shelter “Jan & Peter’s Place” in honor of late Horizon House Resident Jan Shapiro and her husband Peter. 

Jan and Peter Shapiro, who moved into Horizon House in 2017, have been longtime supporters of Compass Housing Alliance. The Alliance works to meet the needs of our vulnerable community members—from emergency services to permanent affordable housing – and strives to create an environment where each person who enters its programs will experience stability, growth, and community.

In April 2019, Compass had the opportunity to move its overnight shelter for women to a facility on Rainier Avenue South. The shelter was renamed Jan & Peter’s Place in memory of Jan.  It is now expanded to a secure 24-hour shelter, in a location that will help homeless women access other services more easily and increase their sense of community, making the transition to housing more stable and sustainable. Jan & Peter’s Place is one of only three 24-hour enhanced shelters for women in Seattle.

“This new and more central location of Jan & Peter’s Place creates community among our women shelter guests by making transportation easier,” said Janet Pope, Compass Housing Alliance CEO in a story posted on Compass Housing’s website. “Additionally, our friends at Pioneer Human Services are located in the top portion of Jan & Peter’s Place, which allows our women shelter guests to access more services like job training and counseling.”

Jan and Peter became involved with Compass in the 90s when Peter was looking for a service-oriented organization to volunteer his time at. He joined Compass Housing Alliance’s board from the 90s through the early 2000s. Jan and Peter have continued to support the organization for years afterward.

Several years ago, there was an opportunity to name a new facility primarily serving homeless men. Jan selflessly wanted it named Peter’s Place, and so it was. In early 2019, when the facility on Rainier Avenue South was reopening with a new mission and needed a new name, Compass Housing Alliance decided to honor Jan by including her in the new name.  By this point, Jan was fairly ill, and she was delighted to be part of the transformation that was taking place to better help homeless women.

Jan & Peter’s Place Women’s Shelter provides a safe, warm place to sleep each night for 40 homeless women and has expanded its services as a 24/7 Enhanced Shelter program. The enhanced shelter model removes several barriers for people transitioning off the street by partnering overnight shelter with 24/7 on-site support services and intensive case management including housing navigation services.

Peter remains involved in various service organizations, now serving on the Board of the Washington Low Income Housing Alliance, which keeps him involved with Compass.

Jan & Peter’s Place is the perfect way to remember Jan.