Family House (Toledo Community Service Center) welcomed 230 students from Bowling Green State University
on Wednesday afternoon, as they arrived to paint the entire inside of the four-story building.
Family House, the largest emergency shelter for families in northwest Ohio, maintains over 35 rooms with
103 beds to accommodate families experiencing the crisis of homelessness. It is located on Indiana
Avenue in Toledo.
"It is both humbling and amazing to see the kind of dedication these students have for those less
fortunate," said Renee Palacios, executive director of Family House. "It is awesome to see so
many young people getting involved to help!"
The BGSU students represented 30 different departments and organizations, in a project led by the
director of the Chapman Learning Community on campus.
"We had graphic design students come in in advance to determine colors," said Palacios.
Indiana Baptist Church across the street provided a temporary space for the families to go while the
painting was being completed, she added. Dinner and activities were provided at the church from 3-8 p.m.
to allow the paint to dry.
Family House has provided emergency shelter to families for over 25 years and is housed in the old
Indiana YMCA building, a huge building.
The Toledo Community Service Center, doing business as Family House, is the second largest emergency
shelter for families in Ohio. It assists almost 300 families annually, including emergency shelter,
food, clothing, basic needs and intensive individualized case management services to move families from
crisis to independent living.