Two parties that were interested in utilizing Shady Rest have joined together in an effort to provide services to individuals struggling with addiction. On Tuesday, September 26 Ted Hayden of Praireview and Gregg Erickson announced that they are forming a partnership to better address the needs of the community than what either could individually.
They would like to open a facility at the Shady Rest Property as a sentencing alternative for the Marshall County Community Corrections and Probation instead of leaving the individuals in the county jail because they have no place to be released.
They would work with the Bowen Center for Certified Counseling services.
The pair outlined that individuals in the program would be required to secure employment, perform community service (court ordered or not), help with gardening/facility maintenance, obtain a GED if they don’t currently have one, obtain a driver’s license if they are legally eligible and take part in some sort of exercise program.
Also as part of the program they would receive training in budgeting, rent, buying a car, shopping, laundry, cooking, housekeeping and coping skills.
This would be in the form of 6 hours of training per week and 4 hours of clinical help per week.
Clients of the service would be under 24 hour supervision, both with cameras and trained personnel. The goal of the partnership is to have 40 clients, 20 male and 20 female in two separate wings. They thought they would need approximately 25 employees. Along with the employees there will be personnel there from the different service organizations in and out of the building.
Ward Buyer the head of Marshall County Community Corrections pointed out that their employees would be in and out frequently checking on the status of individuals. When asked if they would take voluntary clients, the partners answered no that individuals would be assigned to the facility after being evaluated by community corrections much like home detention is now.
Hayden and Erickson are in the process of forming a 501c3 corporation. While neither wants the program to be funded by tax dollars, being a 501c3 will allow for charitable contributions and makes the transfer of deed from the county to the partnership possible.
The committee asked that the two provide a written, more formal business plan for the next meeting Oct. 8 at 2 p.m.
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