Riverton’s Unhoused Task Force is working with the Wyoming Rescue Mission in Casper to set up a shelter for the unhoused in Riverton, local organizers announced this week.
The Riverton Rescue Mission will be open to all, including people suffering from mental illnesses and substance use disorders, volunteer Tiana Payne said during a webinar Thursday.
Further details about the facility are still being worked out, but volunteer Leslie Spoonhunter said she has “faith” in the local team that has formed to spearhead the project.
“We’re going to do it,” Spoonhunter said. “We have it in our heart.”
The team includes Mayor Tim Hancock and Riverton Police Department chief Eric Hurtado, she added.
“They want to be part of the solution,” she said. “The team is so thankful they want to help.”
The goal is to open the shelter next summer, organizers said.
For this winter, the group plans to offer unhoused residents free rides to the warming huts Wind River Family and Community Health Care is providing at the 789 Smokeshop and Casino south of town.
“We need to work on this and make a difference,” Spoonhunter said. “(There should be) no more deaths in Riverton from hypothermia due to lack of shelter.”