Excerpts from media publicitY  

Shelter Director Rises to Challenge of Aiding Women in Crisis — Bankers & Tradesmen, February 11, 2008

unham recently became the head of a Cambridge-based day shelter, or safe haven, for women who are homeless and struggling with a multitude of problems ranging from substance abuse to mental illness to domestic violence. As the new executive director of On The Rise, Dunham will oversee a budget of about $1 million and a staff of dedicated advocates. She will help raise money and launch and implement two new initiatives this year. Now, Dunham is looking forward to implementing a new program at On The Rise that helps women who are in permanent housing but still need other support services.  

On The Rise Appoints New Director — Cambridge Chronicle, January 31, 2008

Ruth Woods Dunham has been appointed executive director of On The Rise, a nonprofit serving women from greater Boston who are homeless or in crisis. With more than 15 years of commitment in the field of social services and domestice violence, she brings deep passion and experience to her new position. Each year, On The Rise works with nearly 300 women as they move from surviving at the fringes of society to finding safety, new possibilities and greater self-sufficiency living in the community.  

On The Rise: A Safe Haven Of Our Own — Spare Change News, February 2007

There is a local safe haven for women right here in Cambridge. It's called On The Rise, and it's located at 341 Broadway Street. They have a lot of really wonderful staff members there and they always do their best to help you out. When I first went there about ten months ago I was really nervous, and the staff made me feel really comfortable. It's not like a staff/guest setting, it's more like a family setting.  

On The Rise Gets $150k — Cambridge Chronicle, November 23, 2006

Recognizing that domestic violence program must be as diverse as the victims who need their services and support, Cambridge-based On The Rise has secured a $150,000 annual contract with the state’s Department of Social Services’ Domestic Violence Unit to provide and strengthen its core services for homeless women with abuse histories…  

Still Rising — Boston Herald, September 24, 2006.

On The Rise, a Cambridge center servicing women in crisis who have slipped through the other social service safety nets, celebrated its annual “Prepare For Winter Dinner” Tuesday night at the Royal Sonesta Hotel.  

agency rises up to help homeless women — Cambridge Chronicle, August 11, 2005.

In an understated, blue Victorian house on Broadway, Logan emerged fresh from a shower last Friday, rubbing lotion on her sleek skin. As she explains it, there used to be days when showers weren’t on the schedule; days when she couldn’t force herself to leave her broken-down car, which she sleeps in each night.  

save haven for women remains on rise after busy first decade — Banker & Tradesman, May 2, 2005.

Unlike traditional service providers, On The Rise, which celebrates its 10th anniversary this year, receives most of its funding from private sources.  

south ender boosts on the rise — South End News, December 2004.

The girls spent their day at On The Rise…In the first hour, the girls talked about homelessness and the connection between violence and homelessness for women, and took a tour of On The Rise.  

helping your fellow woman — The Improper Bostonian, November, 2004 .

Calling itself “the mortar between the bricks”, On The Rise helps women put together resources- legal, medical and housing support, and referrals- that they’ll need to eventually get their lives back on track.  

fels receives honorary degree — Cambridge Chronicle, May 2004.

Katya Fels, founder and Executive Director of On The Rise…received an honorary degree from the Episcopal Divinity School…Fels is one of four people who received this honor for her ministries in social justice.  

Women on the rise in cambridge — Spare Change, June 2003.

“Sensitivity to the trauma experienced by homeless women has been one of the defining characteristics of On The Rise.”  

Life on the streets — Cambridge Chronicle, December 23, 2002.

The [annual homeless] census certainly doesn’t count everybody: you’re going to miss people because it’s highly unscientific.” Said Katya Fels… “But this is a pretty non-intrusive way of getting a handle on an issue in a city that is not giving its full attention.”  

Community Gifts campaign launched — Harvard University Gazette, November 7, 2002.

When Katya Fels ’93 was a Harvard student, she discovered that the undergraduate women she counseled on the Response hotline for survivors of sexual assault had a lot in common with the homeless women she met as co-director of the Harvard Square Homeless Shelter…What separated the two groups was that the support systems available to the Harvard students eluded the women who’d become homeless.  

Japan, Hub unite to end domestic violence — Boston Herald, October 6, 2002.

Recently a group of Japanese social workers came to Boston to learn about American innovations in addressing the problem of domestic violence…The delegation’s visit included a morning at On The Rise…The group peppered Executive Director Katya Fels with questions that revealed much about what these social workers face in Japan.  

40 Under 40 — Boston Business Journal, October, 2002.

While some business people look for better times ahead, these young professionals are doing great work now. Meet the best and brightest of Boston’s business community. 40 under 40 honors Katya Fels, Executive Director, On The Rise.  

All in a day’s volunteering — Boston Globe Calendar, July, 2002.

10 of the Best Non-Jobs You’ll Ever Love: Cook at On The Rise, Inc.  

Defiant Hub stays the course with benefits — Boston Herald, September 17, 2001.

Thursday night, 250 of the 350 expected guests attended On The Rise’s dinner and awards ceremony… "Everyone needs to feel a sense of safety. We're here for the global crises as well as for the crises in individual lives," Fels said.  

Innovations: on the rise, Inc, Putting Mortar Between the Bricks — Massachusetts Office for Victim Assistance Newsletter, Spring 2001.

“Women may seek help for homelessness, addiction, mental health issues, physical illness, disability, or court involvement…In these situations, domestic violence, rape, childhood abuse and incest and histories of multiple victimization may go unrecognized.”  

On The Rise — Catalogue for Philanthropy, 2000.

On The Rise provides safety, stability, and community to women who cannot find them elsewhere.  

Order Rises from chaos for homeless women — Boston Herald, September 16, 1999.

“One of the primary benefits offered is a sense of place in a community.”  

Activist for homeless women honored — Cambridge Chronicle, August 26, 1999.

Fels started On The Rise in 1995 in response to frustration felt by homeless women…On The Rise grew out of their voices-what they needed, what would help them, what hadn’t helped them.  

On The Rise — Spare Change, March 1999.

It seemed obvious that if anytime a woman tries to take control over her life she gets hit, kicked, raped, or molested, it’s hard for her to go through a program where they want to take control over her life. And so what I set out to do was to create an organization that would provide alternative services for this kind of woman.  

A New Guard Emerges — Chronicle of Philanthropy, January 14, 1999.

On The Rise, which runs a day center where women come to shower, sleep, chat, or be by themselves, does not impose traditional rules, such as a curfew or a sobriety requirement.  

Daytime shelter from life’s storms — Boston Globe, February 8, 1998.

It is the prolonged individual attention the staff gives women while helping them find therapy, housing, and medical care, that separates On The Rise from other programs.  

Generation EXTRA: They call themselves social entrepreneurs: young idealists in business to help others. — Boston Globe, December 8 1998.

Katya Fels was a blue-colored hair, multi-earringed, into Gothic-punk teenager who grew up to graduate from Harvard in 1993 with a degree in biology, and instead of going to medical school she founded a daytime shelter for homeless women.