Frequently Asked Questions

Yes. Your stay at Harbor House is confidential. We won’t share that you’re staying here—even with family members—unless you’ve given us written permission to do so. We also won’t share your location with outside organizations without your consent.

We also ask you to help protect the safety and privacy of others in the shelter. This means not sharing the names or personal details of other residents—even after you leave. Posting photos or tagging others on social media is also considered a violation of their confidentiality. If you disclose another resident’s name or personal info, your ability to remain in our shelter may be affected.

Confidentiality is essential to everyone’s safety, and we take every measure to ensure your privacy. The only exception is if police arrive with a felony warrant—in that case, we’re required to comply with law enforcement.

To protect the confidentiality of our residents, we ask that any personal visits take place off site.

If you’re meeting with someone from a community agency, please let a staff member know when they’ll be arriving and make sure you’re near the front office at the time of the appointment.

If you call 911, contact the police, or request help from other emergency responders, please let our staff know immediately. This helps us maintain the safety and privacy of everyone in the building.

As a nonprofit organization, we regularly welcome community members for meetings, tours, trainings, and support groups. We’ll do our best to notify you in advance when these activities are scheduled. Tour information is typically posted the day before—or the morning of—in common areas like the elevator, kitchen, and office door.

In addition, between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., there may occasionally be unannounced visitors or vendors in the building. To ensure your privacy, everyone who enters our facility is required to sign a confidentiality agreement.

There’s no curfew or set “bedtime” at Harbor House, and you’re free to set your own schedule. We just ask that you keep noise to a minimum on the bedroom floors, since everyone has different sleep patterns and needs.

We provide food through the support of St. Joseph Food Pantry, and everything in the kitchen is available to all shelter residents. If you take or prepare food, please label any leftovers with the current date so we can maintain a clean and safe environment.

If you have specific dietary restrictions or needs, we can store your food separately—just talk with a staff member to make arrangements. Culturally specific food can also be provided with the help of your advocate, so be sure to connect with them as soon as possible.

If you choose to purchase your own food that isn’t tied to a dietary or cultural need, it will be considered communal unless it can be stored securely in your assigned kitchen locker.

Yes. We have a computer room that residents can use. To reserve time, please sign up in the binder located in the office. We ask that you limit your computer use to one hour at a time, but you’re welcome to sign up for additional time later in the day.

Computers are for adult use unless a child is being directly supervised by a parent. To help keep our systems safe, please avoid visiting inappropriate websites or downloading programs.

Yes. You can have your mail sent to Harbor House by completing a change of address card with USPS. Please use the following address:

720 W. Fifth St., Appleton, WI 54914

Mail is distributed to residents Monday through Friday. It is not distributed on weekends or holidays.

When you leave Harbor House, you’ll need to update your mailing address. After you’ve been gone for 30 days, any mail addressed to you will be returned to the sender.

Our staff are here 24 hours a day to support you. While they may be assisting other clients or responding to crisis situations, they’ll do their best to help as soon as they’re able.

If you need basic items, you’re welcome to use the cabinet in the client resource area, which is stocked with essentials. If you have longer-term needs, you can write them down on the request list located on top of the cabinet. For other requests, please talk with a staff member or your advocate—we’ll need at least a day to fulfill your request, so you’ll want to plan ahead when possible. If you’re looking for something we can’t provide on site, your advocate can help connect you with other community resources.

If the fire alarm sounds, do not use the elevator. If you’re unable to use the stairs, please talk with a staff member early in your stay so a plan can be arranged. We conduct monthly fire drills, and everyone is expected to leave the building when an alarm sounds. Before exiting, please go to the designated meeting area in the wellness wing on the first floor. This allows staff to account for everyone quickly and safely. If you’re unable to reach the wellness wing due to fire, go directly to the back parking lot instead.

During a tornado watch, we ask that everyone stay on the first floor so updates can be communicated quickly. If there’s a tornado warning, please go to the basement hallway. Activities, flashlights, and a weather radio will be available if needed.

In case of an intruder or other emergency, panic buttons are located throughout the building and can be pressed if needed. These alarms are loud and cannot be canceled once triggered, so please only use them in real emergencies. If an intruder is in the building, move to the nearest room that locks. For safety, all doors are connected to the alarm system and cannot be held open. Only staff and volunteers may open doors for others.