Lydia’s House
Lydia's House is a Cincinnati-based nonprofit Catholic Worker house of hospitality providing emergency shelter, transitional housing, and permanent affordable housing for homeless women and their young children. It delivers holistic support including childcare, aftercare, family enrichment, and a new addiction recovery program, funded by grants and donations.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2013
- HeadquartersCincinnati, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Lydia’s House does
Lydia's House is a Cincinnati-area nonprofit operating as a Catholic Worker house of hospitality that provides emergency shelter, transitional housing, and permanent affordable housing for homeless women and their young children. Founded in 2013 by co-directors Mary Ellen Mitchell and Meridith Owensby, the organization serves pregnant women and mothers with children under age 5, with priority given to women ages 18-24. Core operations are anchored at a primary shelter in Norwood capable of housing up to six women and six children, supplemented by two affordable housing buildings (Virginia Coffey Place opened March 2019; a second building at 1801 Mills Ave opened May 2022), a Green Building apartment complex for past guests, and a new office building purchased in 2023. Services are delivered at no cost to guests and include aftercare programming, childcare through Christ Light Day Nursery, religious education via the Atrium (Catechesis of the Good Shepherd), the Baby Spa summer camp, and family enrichment programs. A new women's recovery services line targeting addiction, co-occurring traumas, domestic violence, and human trafficking was launched in 2026 with a $75,000 matching grant from the Christ Foundation of Hartville.
The organization has no technology product or proprietary platform; its service delivery is people-intensive, relying on paid staff (11-50 employees), a 24-month Dorothy Day Fellowship Program across four tracks, university interns, and a large volunteer network. Revenue is generated through foundation grants, individual and corporate donations, annual fundraising events (notably the Women for Women event), small commercial rental income from affordable housing tenants, and a commercial tenant relationship with Azalea Montessori. Key institutional funders include the Greater Cincinnati Foundation, KeyBank Foundation, US Bank Foundation, Harold C. Schott Foundation, Hamilton County Office of Community Development, and religious orders (Sisters of The Precious Blood, Franciscan Friars). Strategic partners include Bellarmine Chapel, the University of Notre Dame NDBridge Program, Procter Center, and Trout Lilly Montessori, supporting volunteer pipelines, family enrichment, and programming. As of its 10th anniversary in October 2024, the organization has scaled to serve over 20 families in emergency shelter and over 40 families in aftercare annually.
Lydia’s House firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Lydia’s House
- Legal name
- Lydia's House
- Website
- https://stlydiashouse.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2013
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Lydia's House is a Cincinnati-based nonprofit Catholic Worker house of hospitality providing emergency shelter, transitional housing, and permanent affordable housing for homeless women and their young children. It delivers holistic support including childcare, aftercare, family enrichment, and a new addiction recovery program, funded by grants and donations.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Lydia’s House industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Social Services and Affordable Housing
- NAICS
- Temporary Shelters (624221), Community Housing Services (62422), Other Residential Care Facilities (62399)
- SIC
- Services-Social Services (8300), Operators Of Apartment Buildings (6513)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Youth Housing, Foster Care & Wraparound Support (Education-Linked) Nonprofits (BPAGADAO)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Housing & Neighborhood Services (Local Housing Programs) (BPAIACAJ)
Keywords
Where Lydia’s House is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Cincinnati
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices5 records
Markets served
Lydia’s House business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Others
Revenue model
- Grant Funding: Major funding from foundation grants including the Christ Foundation $75,000 matching grant for women's recovery services addressing addiction recovery, co-occurring traumas, homelessness, domestic violence, and human trafficking in Summit County.
- Donations and Charitable Contributions: Funding from individual donors, family foundations, corporate foundations, and religious organizations listed in the 10th anniversary donor acknowledgment.
- Commercial Tenant Rentals: Revenue from commercial tenants in affordable housing buildings, such as Azalea Montessori preschool.
- Special Events and Fundraising: Annual Women for Women event raising $52,000 in 2019 towards solar panel installation. Event includes dinner, performances, and guest storytelling.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels5 records
Lydia’s House product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Lydia's House is a Catholic Worker house of hospitality providing safe emergency shelter, transitional housing, and permanent affordable housing for homeless and pregnant women or mothers with children under age 5 in Greater Cincinnati. The organization delivers holistic care, supportive community, children's programming, religious education, and aftercare services through a residential hospitality model.
Product overview
Lydia's House is a Catholic Worker house of hospitality providing social services including emergency shelter, transitional housing, affordable housing, and family support programs for women and children in Greater Cincinnati, Ohio. The organization does not offer technology products; its services are social welfare programs including shelter services, aftercare programming, affordable housing units (Virginia Coffey Place), Dorothy Day Fellowship Program, Atrium religious education, Baby Spa summer camp, Christ Light Day Nursery, and Nature Playspace.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Dorothy Day Fellowship Program: A 24-month fellowship program offering positions in Community Ministry, Maternal and Family Health, Non-Profit Leadership, and Early Childhood Education with mentoring and compensation.
- Christ Light Day Nursery
- Baby Spa
- Atrium
Products and services
- Emergency Shelter
- Affordable Housing
- Aftercare Program
Quantifiable outcome
- Over 20 families served with emergency shelter and over 40 families served in aftercare program in 2023 alone
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Lydia’s House
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Lydia’s House technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Lydia’s House partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
13 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.
- Bellarmine ChapelcoreOngoing partnership for volunteer support, donations (quilts for guests), and family enrichment programs. Associated with Xavier University.
- University of Notre Dame NDBridge ProgrammajorEight-week summer credit internship program allowing students to work with communities facing injustice. Provided four interns for 2024 Summer Day Camp serving former Lydia's House children.
- Procter Episcopal CampmajorMinistry of Episcopal Diocese of Southern Ohio offering family camp and enrichment programs for Lydia's House families at Procter Center.
- Procter CentermajorEpiscopal camp facility providing annual family camp experience for Lydia's House community with scholarship support.
- Trout Lilly MontessoriminorPartner for family enrichment activities and programs.
- Muse Women's ChoirminorCincinnati women's choir providing performances at Women for Women annual fundraising event.
- Cincinnati Shakespeare CompanyminorProfessional theater company that portrayed former guest stories at Women for Women event to raise awareness and funds.
- Camp JoyminorPartner organization providing summer camp opportunities for Lydia's House children.
- Azalea MontessoriminorFirst commercial tenant in affordable housing building, affiliated with Wildflower Schools national network of Montessori micro-schools for children ages 3-6.
- ArtWorksminorPartnered for driveway mural creation with artist Ellie Wallace as part of 10th anniversary celebration.
- Elizabeth HatchettminorVolunteer mural designer who designed the Bread and Roses mural for 1801 Mills Ave affordable housing building as a gift to the West Norwood neighborhood.
- Laura YrigoyenminorLongtime friend and Atrium volunteer hired to implement Bread and Roses mural artwork with community participation.
- Xavier Eigel FellowsminorFellowship program participants assisting with renovation projects and moving furniture for 10th anniversary.
Scale indicators10 records
Recent moves12 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Lydia’s House competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Bethany House Services: Greater Cincinnati nonprofit providing emergency shelter, transitional housing, and supportive services for families experiencing homelessness. Most direct local comparable given overlapping service model, family focus, and Cincinnati footprint.
- Interfaith Hospitality Network of Greater Cincinnati: Cincinnati-area nonprofit providing emergency shelter and housing stabilization for families with children using a network of faith communities. Highly comparable faith-rooted, family-focused shelter model in the same metro.
- Lighthouse Youth Services: Cincinnati-based nonprofit offering residential, shelter, and family support programs for at-risk youth and families. Comparable in operating a continuum of housing plus supportive services for vulnerable families in the same region.
- Off the Streets: Cincinnati-area nonprofit providing recovery housing for women exiting trafficking, addiction, and exploitation. Closely comparable faith-rooted, women-focused recovery housing model in the same metro.
Regional players
- Shelterhouse: Cincinnati nonprofit providing emergency shelter, housing, and recovery services to individuals and families experiencing homelessness. Overlapping mission in the same region, with broader adult population focus.
- Easterseals Redwood: Cincinnati-based nonprofit providing housing, child development, and family services. Comparable integrated family services plus affordable housing portfolio in the same region.
Broad incumbents
- Family Promise: National nonprofit addressing family homelessness through shelter, prevention, and stabilization programs. Comparable target population (families with children) and shelter-to-housing service model at much larger scale.
- Catholic Charities Southwestern Ohio: Regional Catholic social services agency offering housing, emergency assistance, and family support across Southwestern Ohio. Overlapping faith-based, family-focused service orientation in the same geography.
- Society of St. Vincent de Paul: National Catholic charitable organization providing housing, food, and emergency assistance. Comparable faith-based, holistic support model for low-income families and individuals.
- YWCA Greater Cincinnati: Regional chapter of YWCA USA providing housing, domestic violence services, and women's empowerment programming. Comparable women-and-children focus with overlapping residential services portfolio.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Lydia’s House social profiles
Digital presenceLydia’s House financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Lydia’s House leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
Lydia’s House subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries5 records
Lydia’s House funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Lydia’s House M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Lydia’s House
What does Lydia’s House do?
Lydia's House is a Catholic Worker house of hospitality providing safe emergency shelter, transitional housing, and permanent affordable housing for homeless and pregnant women or mothers with children under age 5 in Greater Cincinnati. The organization delivers holistic care, supportive community, children's programming, religious education, and aftercare services through a residential hospitality model.
Is Lydia’s House a public or private company?
Lydia’s House is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Lydia’s House founded?
Lydia’s House was founded in 2013. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Lydia’s House based?
Lydia’s House is headquartered in Cincinnati, United States, in the North America region.
How does Lydia’s House make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Grant Funding is the primary driver. The others are donations and Charitable Contributions, commercial Tenant Rentals and special Events and Fundraising.
Who are Lydia’s House's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Bethany House Services, Interfaith Hospitality Network of Greater Cincinnati, Lighthouse Youth Services and Off the Streets. Regional players are Shelterhouse and Easterseals Redwood. Broad incumbents are Family Promise, Catholic Charities Southwestern Ohio, Society of St. Vincent de Paul and YWCA Greater Cincinnati.
Does Lydia’s House have an API?
No public API is recorded for Lydia’s House.
What industry is Lydia’s House in?
Lydia’s House's product category is Social Services and Affordable Housing. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAGADAO, Youth Housing, Foster Care & Wraparound Support (Education-Linked) Nonprofits, with a secondary code of BPAIACAJ, Housing & Neighborhood Services (Local Housing Programs). Its NAICS code is 624221 and its SIC code is 8300.