Heart to Heart Brings High Tea and Real Joy to Women at Gateway Center
More than 20 volunteers served an afternoon of generosity and community
On Tuesday, July 28, 40 women at the Gateway Center’s Women’s Housing and Treatment Navigation Center sat down to an afternoon of high tea, live opera, three courses of food, games, prizes, and stories from people who had walked through homelessness and come out the other side. They each left with a gift. The women who joined were in the middle of one of the hardest chapters of their lives, and Heart to Heart – a coalition of women from faith communities across Albuquerque – showed up for the third year in a row to make sure that didn’t define the day.
Heart to Heart is a large grassroots coalition of women from various churches across Albuquerque. It’s not a formal nonprofit but a committed group that has returned to the Gateway Center for three consecutive years with the same intention: to spend an afternoon with women experiencing homelessness in a spirit of dignity, and genuine connection. This year more than 20 volunteers organized and staffed the event, bringing everything with them – tea, food, entertainment, inspiring stories, and gifts so every woman left with something.
“What Heart to Heart brings to Gateway Center is a reminder that these women are seen and valued,” said Mayor Tim Keller. “This is the kind of volunteering that changes not only how a day feels but how a person feels about themselves.”
The Women’s Housing and Treatment Navigation Center is operated by Chicanos Por La Causa and serves up to 100 women at a time experiencing homelessness in Albuquerque. Each guest is assigned a case manager, housing case manager, and peer support worker who work together to support her toward stable housing. The center’s trauma-informed design was shaped in part by people with lived experience of homelessness, creating an environment built on safety and trust. This year’s high tea also included women from the Gateway Medical Respite program, which serves people recovering from medical conditions in a supervised environment while they work toward housing.
“Events like this really boost morale for the women in our programs,” said Homeless Innovations Officer Brittany Karnezis. “We saw women laughing, connecting, and fully present in a way that reminds us community is at the core of this work. Heart to Heart has made this a tradition, and we hope they know how much it means.”
The afternoon featured two types of hot tea served across three courses, an opera singer who performed throughout the event, games with prizes, and uplifting stories shared by those who have experienced homelessness and gone on to find stability.
Heart to Heart has indicated plans to continue the high tea as a yearly tradition. For the women who attend and the staff who witness it, the event has become something to look forward to and a marker on the calendar that says the community hasn’t forgotten them.
Anyone interested in supporting the women and families at the Gateway System of Care can learn more about volunteer opportunities at cabq.gov/health-housing-homelessness/volunteer-and-donate/health-housing-and-homelessness-volunteer-program.
The Women’s Housing and Treatment Navigation Center is located at the Gateway Center, 5400 Gibson SE, and is operated by Chicanos Por La Causa in partnership with the City of Albuquerque’s Department of Health, Housing & Homelessness. For more information, visit cabq.gov/health-housing-homelessness/gateway-system-of-care/gateway-center/housing-navigation-center or call 311.