SEATTLE — Inside a building in South Lake Union, a nonprofit is working to end women’s homelessness through an approach it says sets it apart from traditional shelters: restoring dignity.
The facility doesn’t look like much. But step inside “Dignity for Divas,” and it just might change your life.
For Abriana Tatum Bolar, the program was a turning point. She said she came to Dignity for Divas while fleeing domestic violence and facing homelessness with her two children.
She says she was welcomed with food, resources and something harder to find: acceptance.
“Walking through those doors made us feel like there was a possibility of things getting better,” Tatum Bolar said. “A lot of rooms that you walk in in that position you’re not accepted but I was welcomed with open arms,” she said.
Founder Nikki Gane showed KIRO 7 what sets the program apart.
“Yes, there are the classes and the spaces that teach life skills,” Gane said. “This is our mommy and me cooking class … here we have our yoga and meditation area … beauty and makeup workshop,” she said, walking from room to room.
There is also a food pantry because stability starts with the basics.
“It’s pretty tight out there and the food prices are pretty tough,” Gane said.
Help starts immediately — from a shower to a housing plan.
“I always believe in one call resolution, so let’s get it done today,” Gane said. “So when that person comes in here, they are on their way to a bed, to a shower, to case management.”
All of it is built to restore dignity. Women get name-brand items self-care items. The welcome basket with home goods filled with stuff that’s brand new. “You cannot renew anyone with old things. We want them to feel it’s a new start, band new beginning,” Gane said.
All of that brings the “dignity.” So what makes a “diva”? Gane says it’s a woman who rewrites her story.
“You know, we are providing the playing field for a new game. I’m not changing their lives. They’re changing their lives,” she said.
According to the King County Regional Homelessness Authority’s point-in-time count, there are about half as many homeless women as men — roughly 5,510 compared to 11,169 in 2024. But women face different, and often greater, risks, including harassment and assault, and fewer spaces designed just for them.
Gane knows that reality firsthand. She was homeless herself before founding the program 12 years ago.
“You end homelessness through healing. It is the only route,” she said.
A key part of that healing is housing. Women are connected to homes of their own — and support that stays with them.
“We work with each woman to ensure she keeps the key,” Gane said.
Through job training, mentoring and community, the goal isn’t just getting into housing. It’s stability, independence and breaking the cycle.
“There aren’t other programs like this … You want a place where every aspect of your life, you and your kids can turn around and go there,” Bolar said.
“I always say, whatever happened to you is the fire. And what you do with that is either going to burn you or fuel you. And you’re the only one that can decide,” she said.
Dignity for Divas is currently conducting outreach in six cities: Seattle, Bellevue, Everett, Kent, Renton and Tacoma.