Our History:

On a trip to celebrate the “March for Life”, Colleen DuLac of Carmel, IN, hears a homily at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception which impacts her profoundly. Through the homily she receives a message directly from God that she is to open a home for single, homeless, pregnant women and their children.

Colleen travels back to Carmel and alongside friend Kris Bussick, researches the needs of Hamilton County and the surrounding area. A needs assessment revealed the urgent need for housing for women in crisis pregnancies, especially for women who are 18 years and older and have additional children.

The first Board of Directors is established and a temporary home is located to begin the ministry. The home is named after John Cardinal O’Connor, a great defender of Life in New York City. We receive a great deal of help from “Good Counsel Homes” in NYC who advise us on many issues surrounding the housing and care of the women.

The first fundraiser takes place at the Ritz Charles in Carmel, IN, raising over $60,000. This allows us to officially open our doors in June and hire our first House Director. The first home is located on Rohrer Road in Carmel and can house up to 4 women at a time. The first year is rent-free thanks to the generosity of three businessmen who believe in our cause. Our first resident moves in on June 5th and gives birth on July 3rd – the first O’Connor House baby!

Although the original house is designed with space for 4 moms, the need is so great one office is converted to an additional bedroom to serve a 5th mom and her child(ren).

We receive a $500,000 grant from the Federal Home Loan Bank of Indianapolis for the construction of a new home. We purchase the land on Village Drive in Carmel, have a groundbreaking ceremony, and begin the construction of the new home.

We move-in to the new home on Village Drive which allows us to now serve up to 8 women at a time, plus their newborns and additional children.

Our 100th resident moves-in!

We expand our services to create a comprehensive Life Skills Program including classes covering topics such as nutrition, interviewing skills, parenting, and budgeting. Additionally, we begin to offer professional counseling.

Thanks to a generous donation we transform our unfinished basement into a well-equipped playroom for the babies and toddlers.

We celebrate our 10-Year Anniversary!

Due to the need in our community, we expand beyond our normal capacity, housing 9 women, with 2 sharing a room.

We provide 4,651 nights of shelter – the most in any one year. At one point we have 18 people living in the house. This includes 7 mothers, 6 babies, and 5 older siblings!

Our 100th baby is born!

Despite the global pandemic and subsequent lockdowns, we still serve 36 women and children aged newborn to 4 years old during the 2020 calendar year.

We welcome Michelle Corrao as our Executive Director.

We begin our alumni program – inviting past residents and their children to come together at various events throughout the year.

We welcome our 200th resident

We increase our full-time staff by expanding the role of our House Director and adding a Director of Social Work.

A record number of babies – 11 – are born to women living at the house this year.

Our alumni program is well-established and continues to grow. We hold several events throughout the year, with the most popular being our annual Thanksgiving celebration.

We also expand our full-time staff, adding an outreach component to the

We introduce a newborn curriculum to help our new moms adjust to motherhood – providing valuable support during their maternity leave period.

We hold a record-breaking Celebration of Life fundraiser with over 300 people in attendance and over $145,000 raised.

We celebrate our 20th anniversary and the 569 women, infants, and children served through the years!