In this paper I introduce the Women’s Center in the Old City of Damascus established in the 1990s, as a community space for educational programs and training. What I highlight is how the center transformed over time from the space for UNRWA’s different humanitarian services into a community-managed center. The center is a good case study of how such spaces figure in the lives of refugees: it was a reminder of the degradation of exile but also of opportunities. Based on ethnographic research conducted prior to the civil war in Syria, I discuss how this center played an important part in the lives of refugees through its many uses. By accessing it for humanitarian aid it reinforced their refugeeness, but as a center it amplified their agency. I rely on UNRWA archives to document the different forms of humanitarian aid offered in the space before it was transformed to a women’s center. This part also includes a discussion of the challenge of trying to construct a history of a center from an archive that contains many gaps and absences. I begin with an overview of Palestinian refugees in the Old City and the role of UNRWA in the neighborhood before introducing the center. I discuss how the center served different purposes in the early years of its operations that reflected the agency’s priorities and objectives, followed with an overview of the women’s center and the activities it offered for the betterment of the community. While the emphasis was on supporting women, the center also offered programs to other groups in the neighborhood. In addition, I discuss the significance of pivotal spaces, like the center, in the management of exile with limited resources. I conclude with how the center reflects the many realities facing Palestinian refugees in a protracted exile.