By Molly Monroe
Through arduous legalities, uphill battles, and crises, one man’s faith in Interfaith Sanctuary has never wavered. “I never doubted that it would happen,” he said about the construction of Interfaith Sanctuary’s new Shelter Home on State Street, “You have to have faith that something’s going to happen.” That man is Nick Guho, the third-generation owner of the construction company, Guho Corp.
As Guho facilitated tours through the Shelter Home construction site, he beamed with joy at the neighbors, friends, and donors of Interfaith, who were amazed at the sheer size of the building and the thoughtfulness that went into the design and construction. He carried around memories of when the homeless shelter first opened twenty years ago.
In 2005, churches took turns opening their doors for a month at a time to welcome people off the cold streets and give them a warm place to sleep at night. Burdened by the need for a permanent homeless shelter in Boise, Father Ritchie of Holy Apostles asked his congregation at one mass if anyone knew of a building downtown that was available to give the most vulnerable a safe, stationary place to lay their heads.
Nick, his brother Mark, and their business partner, Kurt Barats, all agreed, walking out of church, that the building that they had just finished remodeling was perfect. It was complete with a large open room, handicap bathrooms, and a mechanical room, on 17th St. and Jefferson St.
They jumped through the necessary hoops to gain a conditional use permit that would allow them to use the building as a homeless shelter. After getting a permit for December through the end of March approved, just enough to get them through the cold months, Guho caught flak for pushing through to give people on the streets a roof over their heads. Nonetheless, he stayed true to his mission to provide a place for people experiencing homelessness.
Volunteers from churches of various faiths and denominations across Boise helped organize and maintain the homeless shelter, giving it its name, Interfaith Sanctuary. Multiple religions banded together under a common goal: to help the most vulnerable population.
When the Jefferson’s conditional use permit expired in 2007, a building on River Street came up for sale to relocate the homeless shelter. Donors generously gave the amount needed to purchase the property and furnish all the bunk beds and bedding. By a miracle, the permits, demolition and remodeling, required fire sprinklers, handicap improvements (most of which was donated), final inspection, and all the official signatures needed to open the doors came together within one month.
All those who were displaced finally had a stationary shelter to seek refuge in for the night. The emergency shelter has operated out of the building on 1620 River Street for the past 19 years. Guho didn’t see this place as the finish line, but just the beginning.
“One of the most touching things I ever saw was one morning when I went into the shelter to do some work, there was a bed on the family side where a little girl had her teddy bear on her little bed, and I thought, ‘This is sad, that’s where she’s calling home.’’ Guho said, “That was moving to me and kept me driving through this whole thing.”
Guho holds fast to his Catholic faith, which believes in serving others. “The Catholic faith teaches me to do what is right, to help others, provide shelter, feed the hungry and clothe the naked” he said. “Do what Jesus would do and help out people who are less fortunate.”
Guho used his abilities to build, organize, lead, and delegate, and his knowledge in construction to serve a greater purpose than himself. Yet he said he couldn’t do it without the support of his wife, Yvonne, who also gives her time to serve those in need through Saint Vincent De Paul.
Eight years ago, on a cool October afternoon, Guho got a call from Executive Director Jodi Peterson-Stigers “We need blankets!” she said, so Guho acted. Walking into Mass on Sunday morning, he asked Fr. Len at Holy Apostles Catholic Church if he could make an announcement and shared with the congregation the need for blankets for people sleeping in the parking lot of the homeless shelter, because there was no room for them inside. He built wooden bins to collect donations and let the congregation do the rest. “To my amazement, we got over one hundred blankets the first year. It gave a lot of people the option to do something good.” Every year since then, Holy Apostles has generously given to the annual blanket drive.
Guho also lent a helping hand on the operations side of the nonprofit. He helped the bookkeeper at the time, Elinor Cheney, who has remained on Interfaith’s board, by taking over the bookkeeping for three years to get everything organized in QuickBooks, allowing the organization to have a records system for applying to grants. This act of service gained Interfaith more money to fund the shelter over the years.
As programming developed and expanded over the last ten years, the River Street shelter didn’t have the functionality or capacity to deliver the best possible services, working out of a job trailer for their support services programs and a food truck for their food assistance. The search for a new building began. The old Salvation Army building, on State St., proved to be the best location as far as size, space, and transportation.
Guho Corp was asked to be the general contractor for this project and began construction in April 2024. “This project is dear to my heart,” he said.
The original budget for the new building grew sharply after long-winded entanglements over the conditional use requirements put on the building permit, and the ability to provide most of the required services and programming needed under one roof. The cost rose to 15.6 million dollars. The total cost of the building, before legalities came into play, was fully funded solely from private donors. Interfaith continues to fundraise to support the ongoing construction to fully build out the new shelter.
Guho believed that every battle was worth it. “I think the end result was a better result,” he said. “God works on his own time.” Perhaps having more time to construct the new Shelter Home made it even more impactful. It grew partnerships, programming, staff, and strength.
His servant’s heart continues to spur him on toward love and good deeds. Who knows where the homeless shelter would be without his unwavering faith in God and Interfaith Sanctuary.