Foundations FYI is developing a Mobile Care Center to bring practical support, hygiene services, resource navigation, and immediate-needs assistance directly to individuals experiencing homelessness and hardship throughout Flathead County, Montana.
One important goal is to help individuals prepare safely and respectfully for transportation to shelters, treatment programs, temporary housing, and other community services. Bedbugs, contaminated clothing, limited access to showers, and other hygiene barriers can prevent people from entering shared facilities or create additional risks for shelters and transportation providers.
The planned Mobile Care Center will provide access to hot showers, clean clothing, meals, personal-hygiene supplies, and industrial laundry equipment. Clothing and washable belongings may be washed and dried using established procedures intended to reduce the risk of bedbugs and other communicable pests before transportation or shelter placement.
When qualified healthcare partners are available, participants may also receive basic health screening, first-aid support, wellness checks, and referrals for medical, behavioral-health, recovery, or emergency care. Foundations FYI will not represent unlicensed staff as medical providers.
While participants receive services, a Resource Navigation Coordinator will meet with them to identify immediate needs, review available options, and help create a practical next-step plan. The coordinator may connect each participant with appropriate shelters, recovery programs, benefit services, housing resources, transportation, and other established providers.
Foundations FYI also plans to connect participants with supportive community sponsors, such as trained individuals, church volunteers, nonprofit partners, or participating organizations. These sponsors may provide encouragement, practical assistance, follow-up, transportation support, meals, mentorship, or other approved help based on the participant’s needs and the sponsor’s abilities.
The Mobile Care Center will build on Foundations FYI’s current Resource Navigation and Weekly Outreach program. Weekly meals, interviews, calls, and referrals will help determine where the unit is most needed and which services should be prioritized.
This project is currently in the planning, fundraising, partnership-development, and equipment-selection stage. Foundations FYI does not yet operate a completed Mobile Care Center.
Donations will support the purchase or conversion of a dependable mobile unit, commercial laundry equipment, shower and sanitation systems, clean-water and wastewater systems, clothing and supply storage, accessibility and safety improvements, insurance, registration, communications equipment, food, hygiene supplies, fuel, maintenance, qualified service partnerships, and pilot operations.
Our goal is to help each participant become clean, fed, supported, better prepared to enter available services, and connected with people and organizations committed to helping them move toward stability.
