The Wyoming Rescue Mission is turning the now-shuttered Mimi’s House property, which formerly served unaccompanied youth in the Casper area, into transitional housing for men.
Mimi’s House officially closed in March amid financial struggles and the departure of its former director, David Rollins.
The nonprofit’s board then approached the Rescue Mission to see if the homeless shelter would be interested in repurposing the property, said Adam Flack, a spokesperson for the Mission.
“I know that they wanted to continue to have that property serve that community in a similar way,” he said.
The shelter purchased Mimi’s House for $160,000 in late May.
It hopes to use the home as sober living housing for men who complete its Recovery Discipleship program, which is geared toward homeless people facing addiction.
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The program has participants stay at the Mission’s facilities as they complete the year-long, “Bible-based” curriculum, which includes educational courses and volunteer work, addiction treatment and case management services, according to the Wyoming Rescue Mission.
Flack said about 83% of people who finish the Discipleship Recovery program go on to live successful, independent lives, but the Mission wants graduates to have access to an additional period of support to help them find their footing.
Guests at the sober living house will pay a modest rental fee and “still be affiliated with the helpful resources that they have from the Mission,” Flack added.
The Rescue Mission isn’t sure when the new facility will start taking residents, as the property is currently undergoing renovations.
The shelter also has a house in Evansville that it plans to convert into a similar sober living housing for women, Flack said. (Right now, the Rescue Mission is using the property as office space.)
Mimi’s House served youth ages 16-19, and according to its former website, had space for up to eight kids. When it first opened its doors in 2019, it was the only home for unaccompanied youth in the area.
The house went on hiatus last fall for organizational restructuring. The hope was to eventually reopen, but it ultimately ran out of funding, a Mimi’s House board member told the Star-Tribune in March.