House of Mercy & Sister Grace
Founded by Sister Grace Miller almost 40 years ago, the mission of House of Mercy is to live the spiritual and corporal works of mercy by serving the poor with unconditional love.
House of Mercy is a homeless shelter that provides hope, healing, compassionate care, unconditional love, and a sense of community. We serve the poorest of the poor and the most vulnerable among us – the mentally ill, the alcohol and drug addicted, the lonely, the broken, the imprisoned, and the unwanted. We welcome everyone, without judgment. We offer safe, comfortable shelter, food and clothing, and basic needs support. Our spirituality and radical love define us.
There is a terrible problem with poverty in the Rochester community. As of 2022, our city ranks as the 5th poorest in the country.
Many men, women and children here do not have enough money to live on. A shocking number of people cannot afford a simple roof over their heads. And their lives are agonizingly difficult every day, especially when winter brings freezing temperatures, blustery winds and snow.
Every month, hundreds of people who cannot find help elsewhere come to House of Mercy. This is a refuge – a place where you can step out of the cold or rain and find food, clothing, shelter, and hope. This small mission saves lives. It feeds the hungry. It gives homeless people the support they need to find jobs and apartments. It provides a compassionate and caring community for people struggling with addiction and mental illness; people who cannot manage their own affairs or survive on their own.
House of Mercy also gives some of the poorest people in the Rochester area the chance to build their self-esteem and discover their own human worth. They come for help. Then they stay to help others. By caring for so many people, and refusing to turn anyone away, House of Mercy takes on a responsibility that other public and private institutions and organizations fail to maintain.
Every hour, as the House of Mercy community exercises compassion for the poorest citizens in our society, it is a tribute to our Foundress. Sister Grace grew up in a poor Italian family in Corning to become a champion for the poor and homeless.
In 1985, Sister Grace founded House of Mercy when she realized that there simply weren’t enough supports to meet the needs of the large homeless community. Sister Grace immediately went to work, and with help from the Sisters of Mercy, she opened a shelter in a small house on Central Park just north of downtown Rochester. As the need has grown, so too has the House of Mercy, expanding first into a larger house on Hudson Ave, and now to a state-of-the-art homeless shelter and drop-in soup kitchen on Ormond Street with more than 20 staff. Together, we serve hundreds of meals a day.
To learn more about Sister Grace Miller, click here to buy Amazing Grace: The Inspiring Story of Sister Grace Miller and The House of Mercy.