Interfaith Works is an Olympia-based nonprofit that exists to promote interfaith understanding and serve the community through charitable, social, and educational endeavors. Many local faith and spiritual communities and affiliated organizations are members of Interfaith Works. Interfaith Works has been active in Olympia for more than 50 years, and has been providing shelter and other services to community members experiencing homelessness for more than 25 years.

The mission of the Interfaith Works Homeless Services is to advance the social inclusion and empowerment of our neighbors experiencing homelessness through innovative practices of sheltering, mental health, and emergency basic needs coordination. Interfaith Works is dedicated to providing services and support to those in need, not as charity but as an act of social justice. The work of Interfaith Works Homeless Services is rooted in empowerment, social inclusion, and community education to end the unnecessary stigmatization of the most vulnerable.

Sandy’s Flats, formerly The Olympia Inn, provides 26 units of stable, permanent supportive housing, along with wrap-around resident support, and a community room featuring on-site laundry and kitchen facilities.

Permanent Supportive Housing is leased housing for formerly homeless individuals that provides case management and other supportive services to help someone maintain their housing and meet their lease requirements successfully.

This housing focuses on individuals who have come to our services through the Department of Commerce and the Washington State Department of Transportation's joint Right of Way initiative (now known as the Encampment Resolution Program), as well as individuals in need of housing identified through the Thurston County Coordinated Entry System. ​Most individuals housed at this location have been working with Interfaith Works in the months prior to move in to fully identify what services will best support them in their housing.

All residents have a lease that details the expectations of the residents. The lease includes many of the same elements of our Space Use Agreement that govern many of our services. Expectations are centered on ensuring the safety of all residents, staff, buildings, and the surrounding neighborhood.

There is on-site case management, as well as laundry facilities and a community room. The community room has a community kitchen and gathering space. This space allows Interfaith Works, volunteers, and other agencies to bring services to the apartment residents, like resident meetings, bingo nights, book clubs, and support groups.

​The name "Sandy’s Flats" honors one of our beloved original shelter guests, Sandy Betz. She was an unforgettable member of our community, frequenting many areas around downtown Olympia. She passed away in 2017. Sandy returned to us in the shelter from housing multiple times as she struggled to find acceptance. Sandy’s Flats houses people in all of their complexity with care.