On Thursday, many Casper community members, including Mayor Steve Freel, came out to support the opening of the Bradley Menzel Miracle Home. This new boys home is the second home opened by Mimi’s House, a program designed to house unaccompanied minors and to provide a warm, family style environment for Casper youth, ages sixteen to nineteen.

Get our free mobile app

According to their website, “Mimi’s House exists to assist and inspire homeless youth with the hope that they will build self-sufficient lives.”

This open house event was designed to show the public exactly what Mimi’s House does, while giving a tour of the home itself. Currently, there are two boys living at the home, but it can house up to 5. This is in addition to the Girl’s Home, which can house up to 8 females.

Mimi’s House officially opened in December of 2019 and the addition of their boys home happened in December of 2020, thanks in part to a large donation from John and Susie Miracle, who have since given their namesake to the home, along with Bradley Menzel. Menzel was John Miracle’s best friend and was a fixture of the Casper community for years as a midget football coach. When Miracle was given the opportunity to have the Boys Home named after him, he took that opportunity to honor his friend.

The Bradley Menzel Miracle Home has been open for a few weeks, but it was officially acknowledged by the mayor and by the city on Thursday.

“This is huge for the community,” Mayor Freel stated. “You look back over time, and there used to be a children’s home here [in Casper] years ago, until it was shut down. And after that, I don’t really know where our youths even went to.”

“There was a need,” Freel continued. “And this organization has stepped up to fill that need in a big way. Starting off with the girls [home] and now the boys have a place to live. This is absolutely huge for our community.”

Chastidy Greenwood-Fox, the Executive Director of Mimi’s House, said that the program wouldn’t even exist if it wasn’t for the support of the community.

“I think the community is actually going to take a lot of pride in what they make possible because without them, obviously, both programs would not be here,” Greenwood-Fox stated. I think they’re going to take it under their wing and they’re going to help us and watch us grow and be our biggest cheerleaders. I think the community understands now that this was a need and that there was a huge gap that we’re trying to make a bridge for.”

As of now, Mimi’s House is privately funded, existing solely because of donations from the community. Greenwood-Fox says that, eventually, as their vision gets broader, they will have to utilize government funding but, for now, they rely solely, and quite literally, on the kindness of strangers.

Strangers like John Miracle, who read an article on the internet about Mimi’s House and decided to donate more than $40,000 to see the completion of the boys home.

It’s because of people like Miracle, as well as various other community members who believe in the vision of Mimi’s House, that homeless, unaccompanied youth now have a place to call their own…a place to call home.

15 Things Every 90s Kid in Casper Totally Remembers Doing

More From K2 Radio