BILLINGS, Mont. – The Billings YWCA is looking to build a second emergency shelter due to the nearly 40% increase in partner and family member assaults during the pandemic.
“We have been really struggling to figure out how to house everyone who needed support,” Billings YWCA CEO Merry Lee Olson said. “So, during the pandemic, we ended up spending $100,000 of unbudgeted money to put people in hotels.”