A new nonprofit is helping unsheltered families in Belknap County avoid homelessness. Family Promise of the Lakes Region’s new venture comes as family homelessness has increased.
Executive Director Nicole Shedd said the need for additional housing services in the Lakes Region was obvious. Last year, the Belknap House in Laconia, the county’s only family shelter, hit its capacity; it housed more than 24 children and their parents for an overall tally of more than 6,500 nights.
New Hampshire has seen homelessness increase by almost 30% since 2020.
“We have so many families with children that are facing rising housing costs,” Shedd said. “We know that in the state we have limited affordable housing options. Financial pressures are growing and can quickly turn what feels like a small setback into a crisis for families.”
By the time Family Promise of the Lakes Region launched Monday, it was already helping three families, Shedd said. Two were at risk of losing their housing and one had already. Shedd and her program director aim to help families avoid eviction and navigate resources to find affordable, stable housing.
That could mean helping families cover back rent, utility bills, or transportation costs so parents can get to work, Shedd said.
“We are really trying to shift that image of what homeless homelessness looks like,” Shedd said. “We don't tend to think of families and that's one of our most rapidly growing demographics for folks that are at risk of losing their housing.”
The state tracks the number of homeless individuals by counting people on a single night each year. Last year, 115 people were experiencing homelessness, 15 of whom were unsheltered at the time, according to the state. The state’s report does not say how many of them were families.
“We believe the number in 2026 is higher and likely to climb as many families are just one unexpected bill away from losing their housing,” Shedd said.
There are three other Family Promise sites in New Hampshire that serve greater Concord, southern New Hampshire, and the seacoast.
Shedd said families in the Lakes Region can request help via her agency’s website, familypromiselrnh.org
