The Sea Glass Initiative, a Baldwin County-based nonprofit focused on ending and preventing homelessness, has been awarded a $2,000 grant from the City of Gulf Shores as part of the city’s inaugural Nonprofit Grants Program. The program, launched in October, aims to support local organizations that provide direct services to Gulf Shores residents. Sea Glass is one of five nonprofits selected during the 2025 fall awards cycle.

Founded in 2023, Sea Glass Initiative operates with a mission to unite the community through compassion and provide equal access to housing and essential services. The organization’s name reflects its core philosophy: transforming brokenness into beauty and hope, much like sea glass formed from discarded fragments.

The grant will support the organization’s “Access in Motion Transportation Initiative”, which provides safe, reliable transportation to unhoused and vulnerable individuals. The service helps clients reach job interviews, medical appointments, shelters, and other critical resources that are often inaccessible without transportation.

“The single most critical obstacle faced by the individuals and families we serve is the lack of reliable, safe transportation,” said Michelle Hillman, Executive Director of Sea Glass Initiative. “It’s the invisible barrier that prevents people from accessing the full spectrum of services they need to exit homelessness.”

Hillman said the program currently operates using a donated van and a dedicated driver, a former law enforcement officer, who provides direct, compassionate service. The grant will help cover fuel, maintenance, and additional transportation needs, including bus tickets for family reunification and emergency shelter access.

Since its founding, Sea Glass Initiative has helped more than 60 households transition from homelessness into stable housing, served over 600 residents with various services in 2024, and provided more than 8,000 hot meals. The organization also reports contributing to a 6.48 percent reduction in the identified unhoused population in Baldwin County.

“This funding ensures the continuation of our high-impact services and allows us to expand our reach,” Hillman said. “It helps us keep transportation a lifeline, not a barrier, on the path to independence.”

Gulf Shores City Administrator Jon Walker praised the organization’s work.

“Sea Glass Initiative is doing more than offering services, they’re removing barriers that often go unseen,” said Walker, “Reliable transportation can be the difference between crisis and stability. We’re proud to support a program that helps people take real steps toward independence.”

To expand its impact, Sea Glass Initiative is seeking a newer, larger passenger van to replace its aging vehicle, scheduling software to optimize routes, and ongoing operational support from donors and volunteers.

Other recipients of the 2025 fall awards cycle include the South Baldwin Literacy Council, Feeding the Gulf Coast, Gulf Coast Arts Alliance, and Christian Service Center.