Martha Sandler of Somerville has been named Executive Director of On The Rise, Inc., a day program for women who are homeless or in crisis. On The Rise is at 341 Broadway, Cambridge.

Board President Carol Goss made the announcement on behalf of the program, which serves more than 300 women from Cambridge-Somerville and the Greater Boston area each year.

Friends of On The Rise and interested members of the public are invited to to meet the new director and find out more about the program at an Open House on Tuesday, May 19 from 5 to 7 p.m.

“On The Rise supporters—both donors and volunteers—are very aware of the growing number of women who need a hand, right here in Cambridge and nearby,” Sandler says. “They also know that with a little help from us, many of these women can move on to better things.”

The number of women seeking help at On The Rise went up by more than 10% in 2008, she said. This year it is increasing more steeply along with jobless and homeless rates.

“Many of our donors are making special efforts for us now,” Sandler notes. “Plus we have a wonderful volunteer support network—much of what we’re able to do comes out of that.”

On The Rise offers essentials: clothes, a square meal, a refuge from domestic violence. It also offers access to services: medical care, addiction treatment and counseling, legal advice, job-hunting facilities.

Sandler has a long-standing connection to On The Rise. Since 2003 she has been its financial officer. Before that she was a volunteer and served as the board’s treasurer and president. She is a Smith College graduate and holds a 1992 MBA from Northeastern University.

She succeeds Ruth Woods Dunham as Executive Director. The post was previously filled for more than a decade by the organization’s visionary founder, Katya Fels Smyth.

OTR’s financial supporters include many individual donors as well as area businesses, faith communities, foundations and government agencies. Significant funding comes from Boston Scientific Foundation; Alfred E. Chase Charity Foundation, Bank of America, Trustee; Llewellyn Foundation; Ludcke Foundation; and Baupost Group Charitable Fund at the Boston Foundation. Public sector supporters include the Domestic Violence Unit of the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families, the Massachusetts Office of Victim Assistance, and local municipalities.