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The Beacon at Sherman Hill is a shared, structured home in Des Moines for adult women, and those who identify as female, who are rebuilding their lives. You live with other women, meet with a Case Manager every week, and work toward income, savings, and a place of your own.
Want help? A caseworker, counselor, or someone you trust is welcome to sit with you while you apply.
Can I apply?
If both of these describe you, we would like to hear from you. If you are not sure, apply anyway, or call and we will talk it through.
• Without a safe, steady place to sleep, or staying in a shelter or somewhere not meant to be lived in
• About to lose your housing
• Leaving domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, or trafficking
• Leaving jail or prison
• Have 30 days sober, or 28 days if you are coming straight from Medicaid-funded treatment
• Make $24,450 a year or less. No income yet is okay.
• Will work toward legal income. SSI and SSDI count.
• Can commit to 6 to 24 months in a shared home with structure
The only exceptions are a legal restriction from being around women or children, or a violent offense in the last six months. Medication for addiction treatment is welcome, and every pathway to recovery is honored.
Good to know
You are held accountable, and you are not alone. Here is what daily life at Sherman Hill looks like.
Starts your first day. No income yet is okay, and payment plans are available. It is a program fee, not rent, and it keeps the beds open for the next woman.
Up to four women share a room and its bathroom. The kitchen and common spaces are shared by the whole house.
A drug screen when you move in and random testing after that. Recovery or wellness meetings every week, and any pathway counts.
Chores, a weekly house meeting, a Case Manager every week, and a curfew that grows as you move up.
The Sherman Hill journey
Each phase has a wellness focus and a few growth signs your Case Manager looks for. Only Phase 1 is timed. Every phase after moves at your pace, so one woman may finish a phase in weeks and another in months, and neither is behind.
01
Ask for help
Settle in, put your ID, insurance, and care in place, and begin income work. Five weeks, or until you have legal income.
02
Keep commitments
Work 32 hours a week or have verified income, start budgeting and saving, and begin digital literacy.
03
Own it and try again
Finish digital literacy, save your first $100, and establish a primary care and a women's health provider.
04
Model it for others
Three meetings a week, continued wellness practice, classes or job training, and $200 saved.
05
Guide others
Build your post-program housing plan, update your service plan, and save $400.
06
Sustain it on your own
Save $600, secure a signed lease or stable housing, and create your graduation plan.
Graduation means twelve requirements, each held for six months, including income, insurance, a doctor, $600 in savings, and a home of your own. Then we stay with you for up to three years.
How to apply
It is one online application for both Sherman Hill and The Beacon Village, and you can ask for help at any point along the way.
Start your application →Or type: app.onestepsoftware.com/forms/AGq0VwA
1
Fill out the application yourself, or with a caseworker or someone you trust beside you.
2
We often have a long waitlist, so this can take time. Keep your phone and email working. That is how we reach you.
3
A staff member talks with you about your goals and the program.
4
Housing status, income, sobriety, and a background review.
5
If you are approved, we schedule your move-in and send you what to expect.
Please do not come to the house without an appointment. If we cannot reach you for 90 days, we close the application, and you can always reapply. If you are approved and no bed is open, you stay on our list as long as you keep in touch.
Ways in
For you
Start the application whenever you are ready. If you have questions first, call us and a real person will help you find the right next step.
Start your application →
For caseworkers and partners
Help her apply online, and sit with her while she does. Keep her contact information current, and keep a backup housing plan in place. A court date, release plan, or discharge date cannot move someone up the list.
Start their application →
Six months sober with income?
Our 32 independent studio apartments, each with its own one-year lease. Rent is $690 to $900 a month with utilities, Wi-Fi, and laundry included. It is the same application.
Learn about the Village →You can ask for a reasonable accommodation at any point in the process. The Beacon follows all fair housing laws. Equal Housing Opportunity. Questions? (515) 244-4713 · admin@thebeacondm.org
