President John Griffith called the meeting to order promptly at 12:23, with the ring of the bell and welcomed everyone to today’s meeting.

Eric Schlidt and Steven Schnell were our greeters today and Steven introduced the members who brought guests:

President John Griffith told us that Dale Bohren’s mom passed away early this morning.

Kevin Murphy told us that Mike Sullivan’s wife Jane had a brother that passed away from a heart attack while snowmobiling this past week;

Katie Caldwell- Burchett nominated everyone who helped and attended the Adult Prom over the weekend, including the following; Ben Winckler and Jessica Sorensen for their photography, Jim Beck for the media coverage and sponsorship, Kendra Ziler and the team at the Event Center, Richard Schwahn and Altitude Veterinary, Fisrt Interstate Bank, and the McMurry Foundation for table sponsorships, Mike Stepp and Donnell’s Candy, Mike Louge and his State Farm office, The Science Zone, Taylor Schwahn and Gruner Brothers, all for thei auction donations, John and Lauren Griffith for the wine donation, The Ramkota for their vendor partnership, and everyone who attended and participated.

 

Anthony Martinez announced that they have a date of July 25^th for the upcoming Golf Tournament, there are flyers on the tables so make sure you mark this on your calendars and get ready. The theme this year is Around the World in 18 holes.

President John Griffith announced that the applications for RYLA and Young RYLA are still open. District Conference for the end of May registration discounts for early birds expires at the end of February then the rate increases so get signed up. DGE Bill Schilling has the Spring Assembly for Casper scheduled for March 28^th. The Rotary Scholarship applications for graduating Seniors are due at the end of this month. We still have a couple of committees that are in need of members, the Membership Experience Committee, and the Project Committee, so please contact someone on the board if you are interested in participating on one of those.

We had two great students today, Haley Jackson from Roosevelt HS and Zack Kohtala from Midwest HS.

Erin Morgan, Sabrina Foreman, and Jim Gleason al received their Blue Badges today, congratulations to all three.

President John Griffith introduced our speakers today, our very own Miamie Sleep and Chastidy Greenwood. Miamie started by telling us that she is the founder of Mimi’s House and then she introduced some of the Board members from Mimi’s House. Mike Stepp, Phillip Rael, Laramie Cummings (VP) and Angela Hoerner (Treasurer). She then turned the mic over to Chastidy who started by telling us the back story of Mimi’s house. Miamie told Chastidy one day that she wanted to open a shelter for homeless teens. Miamie showed her a big binder full of everything she had researched and had put together, then she told Chastidy that if she really wanted to help she could give her a list of things to do. That conversation led them to where they are today. There are brochures on the tables with additional information. They started this journey almost four years ago. They did a lot of research and found that there are over 40 unaccompanied teen homeless in Natrona County. Their vision was to bridge that gap between aging out of the system and being out on their own in order to help them have the right tools to be an adult in the world. They opened this past December and currently have two residents in the program. One of them is back in school and is set to graduate from High School on schedule. They have a full-time house mom that lives there with the girls and teaches them all about taking care of the house and other life skills. The difference between accompanied and unaccompanied minors is that the unaccompanied does not have their parents with them. They house the unaccompanied ones who have no parents or family to help them. They normally live wherever they can find a place to sleep. Mimi’s is a female only facility currently with plans to create a place for the males as well eventually. There are differing reasons for the teens to be homeless. They started this for the youth who age out of the Foster care system and have nobody to help, in this program they do not age out but are helped to move out when they are ready. The statistics on the number of homeless youth comes from NCSD statistics so the 40-60 are just the ones that are registered in school so there are others that are not counted in that number. The house is funded by donations and grants and they are thankful for the donations that they receive from the community. She then opened the floor for questions, she was asked what the criteria is for the residents to stay at the house. She stated that they have chores around the house they have to do as well as it is required that they volunteer at least 10 hours a month in the community since the community is making it possible for them to be there. The girls like to go to the Humane Society to volunteer because they love the animals. There is a curfew and they have to obey the house mom’s rules and if they do not have a HS diploma then they have to be working towards that or their GED. They currently have room for five teens but can handle more if emergencies require it. They have an application and they have to accept the rules. They do not turn away the kids but if their program is not the right fit, they will help them find a program that fits their needs. If they have someone show up at their door that is leaving a bad situation, they will not turn them away but will verify that they are not a runaway but actually a child in need. They then coordinate with the authorities to make sure that the child is taken care of. DFS as well as teachers at the schools and many other people also through Face Book is how these youth find them for the help they need. They also partner with Mercer House to provide counseling with these kids and they make sure that they get the help they need. She stated that their program is not faith based but if the teen wants to attend church or anything faith-based, they will assist them by steering them in the right direction. Miamie stated that the new program that is opening up on Life Steps campus is similar and they are excited to have them joining in on helping these kids.  The house mom gets a very small wage but is a very integral part of the house. She has the passion to do this job and is just like a mom for these girls. The name Mimi came from Miamie’s nieces that had a hard time saying her name so it came out Mimi, so that is what Miamie’s family calls her. Since it is her dream and her house then they decided to name it after her, Mimi’s House. They interview weekly and feel that they will be full within the month. They want to make sure that the child is a good fit before accepting them. They have financial advisors that help them to learn what they need in order to survive financially when they leave so they do not want them leaving until they are prepared to be an adult. The annual budget right now is about $160,000 and as they add more girls they will keep recalculating that to make sure they know where they are. There is a list of needs on the tables if anyone wants to donate things like food or supplies. They also said if you want a tour please give them a call and they will set an appointment to walk you through the facility. They have some fundraising events coming up, the next one is March 14^th at Gruner Brothers and tickets are available. Contact them for mor information on fundraising events and thank you for your support.

 

President John Griffith concluded the meeting at 1:13, he let us know that next week, we will be back at the Ramkota. Our program will be May Linn Nara and Susan Brown talking about Psychiatric care at the VA in Sheridan.

 

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