by Tammy Taylor
Staff Writer
On a rainy Martin Luther King Jr. Day, a small group of people met formally for the first time in a downtown cafe to discuss the needs of young, at-risk women in Jacksonville.
THORMINC, short for The House Of Refuge Ministries, Inc., is a local non-profit organization “dedicated to ministering to the needs of hurting women.” In 2000, the organization established a halfway house in Springfield to provide housing for young women who have recently been released from prison, living on the street or who have been battling addiction.
While in THORMINC House, women participate in a mentor program that encourages self-sufficiency and increased self-esteem. The participants are also encouraged to take advantage of the “12 Step Recovery Program,” career planning and support and job placement services.
“Recovery does not stop with just being clean,” reads the THORMINC brochure. “At THORMINC. . . participants learn to recognize and come face-to-face with feelings that they have never coped with successfully.”
THORMINC’s first meeting was the beginning of weekly gatherings that will take place until there is increased participation.
“We are trying to get different entities to work for the same cause,” said Pastor Jacob Bush, the founder of the ministry. “So far, we have support from the New Covenant Ministry, the Westside Church of God, the sheriff’s department and the Department of Corrections.”
Information on Guidestar.com, a website that reports non-profit tax returns, shows that the majority of THORMINC’s funding comes from private contributions. According to the organization’s brochure, fundraising events provide 85 percent of the annual budget. It has not been until recently, when THORMINC received $5,000 from the 2003-04 mayor’s matching grant program, that the organization has received any type of government money.
THORMINC is not just a shelter, but a housing project with specific guidelines for residency.
Each resident is required to remain employed during their stay, although there is a requirement that no one have a night job during the first 90 days for safety and monitoring reasons.
Residents pay $90 a week while at THORMINC House for the use of a bed, walk-in closets, a laundry room, television, phone services, kitchen and Serenity Room. They are expected to follow all established rules and attend all in-house and outside meetings.