Seattle King County Realtors® has awarded the 2022 First Citizen award to Mary’s Place, a nonprofit providing critical services to homeless women and families.

In 2021, Mary’s Place provided 141,412 overnight stays for 586 families and 1,204 children at its five locations. Their housing and mobile outreach teams helped 549 families find permanent, stable homes.

The selection committee said it was impressed not only by the number of families Mary’s Place serves but also by its flexibility during the coronavirus pandemic and its efforts to address systemic racism.

“Congratulations to Mary’s Place for this well-deserved honor — an important recognition of the innovative work they do to address the crisis of family homelessness in our community,” Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell said in a news release. “Mary’s Place has offered critical shelter, care and services for over two decades, helping women and families in our region move quickly into safe, stable homes.”

The First Citizen award was created in 1939 to celebrate public service and volunteerism. Mary’s Place is the 84th recipient of the First Citizen award and just the third organization, rather than an individual or family, to earn the honor. 

A civic celebration of Mary’s Place, presented by SKCR in partnership with John L. Scott Real Estate and Windermere Real Estate, is being planned for summer or early fall, the news release said.