The Hearts of the Home

In a little over half a year since its grand opening, transitional housing nonprofit Yesterday’s Gone has doubled in staff and the tiny homes offered to women who are recovering from past abuse or trauma.

Rooted outside Liberty Hill, the Williamson County nonprofit offers shelter and programs to help women who have escaped difficult domestic situations. 

To expand their housing arrangements, the organization received two new campers as donations, named the Fox Den and the Bluebonnet Home.

“[The campers] have their own refrigerator and a tiny stove,” Founder and Executive Director Loree Tamayo said. “If I were to stack them together, this is better than the tiny homes, and it’s half as much money.”

Doug Frazior donated the Bluebonnet Home to Yesterday’s Gone. He is a  

volunteer at the Hope House in Liberty Hill. Through his connections in the nonprofit community, Mr. Frazior donated the Bluebonnet camper.

“After seeing what this place is about, with helping women in domestic violence situations, it just felt right,” he said. 

The Fox Den camper was gifted by a couple from Bastrop in November after they prayed over it. Ms. Tamayo mentioned that when the couple called and toured the property, they knew it was meant to be.

“He said, ‘I can tell you right now, I 100 percent believe that this is where God wanted [the camper] to be,’ ” she recalled.

Renee Fox and her team Deborah Everett and Carla Gerlich from Fox Reality paid for the donated camper.

Compared to a $70,000 tiny home, a new camper costs between $30,000 to $45,000. With the campers, they can provide sleeping arrangements for more people, sometimes up to eight.

After both homes were donated Ms. Tamayo said a local art teacher volunteered to paint murals on them. Eventually, Ms. Tamayo said all the tiny homes and campers will have fences around them with an additional shed for storage. 

With the added space, the organization can move in two more families to the Yesterday’s Gone property. However, demand is high, and there are about 30 women on Yesterday’s Gone waitlist. 

On the administrative side, Yesterday’s Gone added a part-time counselor and a Volunteer coordinator to the staff. The nonprofit currently houses three women, five children and one dog on the property. Yesterday’s Gone has a total build-out of nine tiny homes on the property.  

Yesterday’s Gone held its grand opening in March. For more information, potential donors and those in need of assistance can visit www.yesterdaysgone.org. 

For those in emergencies, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-799-7233 or visit Hope Alliance at www.hopealliancetx.org.