Get Help

To explore your housing options, please visit our Day Center to sign up with a case manager; some transitional and permanent housing programs may require a referral. In the meantime, do your best to obtain documents that a housing facility will require, such as your birth certificate and/or state issued ID, social security card, and proof of income. Please note that we can also assist you with these, if needed.

We are open 365 days a year. Our hours on Monday through Sunday are 7:30am – 3pm, Thursdays we are opened from 7:30am-12pm; our holiday hours are 7:30am – 3pm. 

We serve three daily meals, seven days a week, 365 days a year. Breakfast is served at 7:30am, lunch is served at 11:30am (except on Thursdays when lunch is served at 11am), and an afternoon snack is provided at 2pm until supplied last.

Many of our meals are prepared and served by volunteer teams. To learn more about volunteering in the kitchen, visit our Volunteer page here.

Any woman can visit our Day Center to receive a meal, make phone calls, access a computer, secure a physical mailing address, get a fresh change of clothes based on availablity, and use clean, private bathrooms and showers. Women are also encouraged to sign up for case management and counseling services, as well as any of our other housing, health and wellness, employment and job-readiness, and advocacy programming.  

Additionally, to participate in Day Center programming, attending a Day Center Orientation is required. Orientations take place every other Monday at 10am and are led by a Day Center Coordinator to acquaint new participants with DWC’s breadth of services. During an orientation, you will receive a tour of DWC, learn how to access case management and health clinic services, learn how to sign up for Day Center chores, and get to know other women at DWC.

DWC is not an overnight shelter, but there are several nearby in the downtown Los Angeles area, including:

• Union Rescue Mission (URM), (213) 347-6300, 545 S. San Pedro Street, Los Angeles, CA 90013. ID needed. 15-day, one-time emergency stay, with possible extended stays; URM also operates the Gateway Program, which can provide up to $210/month.
• Winter Shelter Program (WSP), please click here for a full list of locations. The WSP operates between the months of December and March. If you are in need of shelter when the WSP is closed, please call 211 for emergency referrals or visit the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority’s (LAHSA) website to find help.

DWC provides on-site services to single adult women and gender expansive folks only. 

We provide off-site housing support to families through our Domestic Violence Housing Program and Community-Based Housing Program. If a family comes to us in need of immediate services or a place to stay, our case managers can refer them to other local organizations.

Any participant who is experiencing homelessness, is at risk of becoming homeless, or fleeing domestic violence can sign up for case management in-person at our Day Center, Monday-Friday between 8:30am-9am, first-come first-serve. For more information about the case management services we offer, please contact Day Center Case Management Program Supervisor, Karen Avila at KAvila@downtownwomenscenter.org.

On-site clinic appointments are available on Monday – Friday from 8:30am to 3pm with the medical social worked or health benefit specialist.

To sign up for clinical appointments, or to learn about our other health services, please speak to your case manager or a member of our health team on Tuesdays and Fridays from 9:30am to 11am in the Day Center. Depending on your health insurance coverage and your specific medical needs, you may need to wait for an appointment or be referred to another clinic.

Our health clinic provides the following:

• TB test referrals, and vision and foot screenings.
• Free HIV testing and counseling.
• Medical case management services, health and wellness counseling, and monthly health education workshops.
• Weekly drop-in fitness classes and peer support groups.
• One-on-one assistance with benefits, as well as monthly benefits workshops.

DWC offers job training programs and employment services led by volunteers and staff. To participate, visit our Day Center and join us for an Employment & Education Orientation, held Monday-Friday from 10am – 11am in the Learning Center. To attend, please check in with the Day Center staff.

TIC is a service approach that acknowledges the widespread, long-term impacts of trauma; understands signs and symptoms of trauma; and responds by integrating knowledge about trauma into all policies and practices. A simple approach with substantial benefits, TIC improves both emergency and permanent services, reducing costs and leading to stronger short- and long-term outcomes overall.

At DWC, we practice a TIC approach across all our programs and services to ensure that women’s unique service needs are met in both women-specific and mixed-gender settings. We do so by:

• Providing low-barrier services without requiring participants to complete a formal intake process.
• Offering individualized treatment plans and services that employ a strengths-based vs. punitive approach.
• Organizing enrichment activities that facilitate a positive sense of ownership of communal spaces.
• Providing trauma-informed care trainings to all new hires.
• Providing supportive services, outreach, emergency and healing interventions to survivors and their families through our Trauma Recovery Center.