Finding sanctuary
Emma Norton Services, based in St. Paul and Minneapolis, works to create housing and support for women and families who have experienced homelessness.
By Sarah Bakeman and Taylor Hanson
Tonya Brownlow first realized her passion for homeless intervention 30 years ago while handing out keys at Our Savior’s Housing, a shelter and homeless support nonprofit. Residents of the building were formerly homeless, and the non-profit was providing them with three meals a day and a bed at night — though they needed to get their room keys from the front desk every evening. Brownlow made a point to remember residents’ names and use them when handing over the room keys. Usually, the gesture triggered wide smiles.
“Having that recognition as a human meant a lot,” Brownlow said.
From January 2022 to January 2023, Minnesota saw a 27% increase in families with children experiencing homelessness, according to a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development study featured in the Minneapolis Star Tribune. As the Twin Cities face this struggle, Emma Norton Services, named after a founding donor, seeks to provide support for individuals experiencing homelessness. Based in St. Paul, Emma Norton is a nonprofit that provides transformational housing for women on the road to recovery — whether it be from substance or domestic abuse — and their families.
After Brownlow received a master of social work from St. Catherine University and working at St. Stephen’s Human Services as an assistant director for four years, she joined Emma Norton in 2014. She saw Minneapolis and St. Paul as cities in need of change. The homeless outreach and support was “designed to help people who already had a good path ahead of them,” not those who had experienced trauma and lifelong addiction. According to Brownlow, these factors often make it hard for individuals to seek help. She wanted to work for a compassionate provider — one that would allow people to make mistakes and still receive help.
Emma Norton differentiates from other transformational housing because it doesn’t kick residents experiencing addictions out after they relapse. Instead, the organization follows a sanctuary model, which emphasizes that relapse is common and sometimes necessary in the recovery process.
“It’s more about education and learning than enforcing,” Brownlow said. “We want to foster supportive conversations.”
Brownlow shared a story of a young woman who came to Emma Norton looking for housing after almost overdosing. The housing she had been staying in kicked her out. She came to Emma Norton hoping they could give her something she had yet to receive: a second chance.
After living in the Emma Norton housing, the supportive conversations around addiction helped the resident reach her goal of sobriety. However, after leaving the program, she went through another relapse period. But Emma Norton didn’t give up on her, like other shelters had in the past. Brownlow emphasizes the importance of trusting relationships with case managers which allow residents to be open about their relapses.
After relapses, case managers ask residents questions about their goals in life. Then they ask them how they think drugs and alcohol might be impacting those goals. From there, the resident decides how they want to move forward.
With the help of Emma Norton, the resident became sober once more and now she is a full-time employee at Emma Norton.
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Peer Recovery Specialist Jonda Crum did not receive shelter or support from Emma Norton when she was experiencing homelessness, though she now works for the nonprofit.
Crum ended up in a hospital and almost died in 2017. She had a staph infection, a leading cause of hospitalization among people experiencing homelessness, often caused by drug injection. Crum remembers not leaving her bed for six weeks, which led to atrophied muscles and difficulty walking. However, more than that, she recalls how she was treated by hospital staff due to clinical bias.
“I could start using again and have my life really downfall, or I could get on medical-assisted treatment.” –Jonda Crum, peer recovery specialist
Crum had one hospital worker, a nurse practitioner, advocate for her. He put a hold on her, ensuring she made it into a short-term treatment center. After her stay ended, Crum went to a shelter. Living among active addicts wasn’t easy, and she struggled to get her own room. But after advocating with shelter staff, she did. Crum said it kept her grounded.
“I had two ways to go about it,” Crum said. “I could start using again and have my life really downfall, or I could get on medical-assisted treatment.”
Crum chose treatment, and she has been sober for seven years since.
In January of 2024, Crum started working with Emma Norton full time. Because of her lived experience with homelessness and addiction, Crum feels she can relate to the women Emma Norton serves on a deeper level. Their shared experiences allow conversations to flow and she recognizes that the residents only want to be heard.
“I would do this for free. It doesn’t feel like a job to give people a better opportunity.” –Jonda Crum, peer recovery specialist
In her position, Crum goes around speaking in prisons and conferences. She talks about her 0wn experiences and she speaks out about the need for change with different policies. She knows that people who haven’t had those experiences will never understand or relate to the people in her position. She wants Emma Norton to be a safe place for anyone to get the resources they need. Her goal is to continue bringing in people that know and she believes that these types of organizations are stronger together.
“I would do this for free. It doesn’t feel like a job to give people a better opportunity,” Crum said.
The organization is also starting to open the spectrum for the people they work with. At first, the organization solely focused on women. But now, they work with transgender people, a disproportionately unsheltered population, and they are continuing to open up their services.
“The more you believe in people and support them, it will go a long way,” Brownlow said.
Brownlow’s job has changed over the years, and continues to change as the organization grows. Now, her days consist of meetings, sharing Emma Norton’s story, finding partnerships throughout the cities, working with the board of directors and finding ways to improve the organization.
Emma Norton services are currently working on the opening of a new residence location called the Highland Bridge neighborhood. This neighborhood is a development of new apartments that will house more than 60 individuals and their families. It is being designed with trauma-informed principles with hopes of creating a welcoming environment that develops a sense of safety and security for all.
This new project will also introduce the “living room” model to Minnesota. In this model, there will be rooms located in the neighborhood that, as Brownlow explains it, will act as an alternative to the emergency room for people experiencing a mental health crisis. This service will not only be for residents, but for the community as a whole. Within this service, people will be able to have easy access to one-on-one support, a safe place to rest and referral to community resources.
The Highland Bridge neighborhood will open May 14, 2024.
