About
ShelterBox USA is the American affiliate of ShelterBox, an international disaster relief organization that provides emergency shelter and essential aid items to families displaced by natural disasters and conflict. ShelterBox works toward a world where no family is left without shelter after disaster, often reaching remote and underserved communities that other organizations may not. Since its founding, ShelterBox staff and volunteers have helped to shelter more than 3 million people in around 100 countries.
Mission
ShelterBox envisions a world where no family is left without shelter after disaster. It delivers rapid-response emergency shelter — alongside tools and essential supplies — to communities affected by hurricanes, earthquakes, floods, wildfires, conflicts, droughts, cyclones, and other crises, both internationally and within the United States.
What they do
- Emergency shelter: tents and tarpaulins that give displaced families a safe place to live while they recover.
- Essential aid items: tools, blankets, mosquito nets, cooking sets, shelter repair kits, water filters, and solar lights, tailored to the needs of each disaster.
- Disaster response worldwide: recent responses have included flash floods in Nepal, earthquakes in Venezuela and the Philippines, and conflicts affecting Lebanon, Ethiopia, Mozambique, and Syria.
History
ShelterBox was established in April 2000 by the Rotary Club of Helston-Lizard in Cornwall, England, as the club's millennium project. Its first shipment of 143 boxes went to earthquake survivors in Gujarat, India, in January 2001. The Rotary Club of Lakewood Ranch in Sarasota, Florida, adopted ShelterBox as a project in 2002, and ShelterBox USA was formally incorporated as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit in 2004. The 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami catalyzed major growth: in 2005 alone the organization sent over 22,000 boxes, nearly ten times the previous three-year total. By 2018, ShelterBox had responded to disasters across multiple continents and received a Nobel Peace Prize nomination. ShelterBox is a registered charity independent of Rotary International and the Rotary Foundation, but the two maintain a formal partnership.
Scale and impact
ShelterBox has provided shelter to more than 3 million people in around 100 countries, including responses in Cameroon, Syria, the Philippines, and the Caribbean. The organization frames its work against a global need of roughly 117 million people displaced by disaster and conflict.
Financials
Per ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer, for fiscal year 2025 Shelter Box USA reported total revenue of $16,060,348, total expenses of $15,045,591, and net assets of $7,233,649. Contributions represented 98.6% of revenue.
Governance
ShelterBox USA is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit incorporated in Florida (EIN 20-0471604), tax-exempt since March 2004. Kerri Murray serves as President, with Lyndsay Skeegan as Chief Operating Officer.
