Submitted by Trisha Homan: Inside Ivy House, parents are given relief for up to 30 days a year and three days at a time as their kids are taken care of by trained staff.

NEW ULM – For families in New Ulm who need a place to go for help, Ivy House has served to fill that need.

The service covers families with kids aged 0-10. Executive Director Trisha Homan said they seek to help families in crisis.

“Ivy House is a safe and loving home in New Ulm,” she said. “We provide free and confidential care when families are in crisis or stressful situations. We exist to support families going through a lot of different situations. [We’re} a support to them so they can get out of their stressful situation.”

They work in three ways. Their child care program is what they’re known best for, where free care is provided for up to 72 hours for parents who need help. A basic needs program gives families items outside of care they need, such as diapers, wipes, clothing, and jackets as examples. The family advocacy program connects families with other resources for additional help.

They are a relatively new service organization in New Ulm, starting in 2016. Program Manager Jena Schroepfer said the child care program can start with just one phone call.

Submitted by Trisha Homan: Kids who are brought to Ivy House have no shortage of things to do or play with as they are engaged and enriched.

“We’d have a family call the crisis line,” she said. “They would be greeted by our family advocate, and we’d set up care. Families can use this 30 days within a calendar year, up to three days at a time. They call to set up care and our on-call staff fills in the request, and then parents bring their kids drop off.”

Homan, who has been there for two years, said it has been a humbling experience being able to provide families with the support they need.

“It’s been eye-opening to see the different types of situations we have and the stressors that families face,” she said. “The beautiful thing is how we can support them. We get to see the amazing work Ivy House does for families.”

Ivy House gets no funding from government assistance, operating off of grants, funding, and donations exclusively.

“We have our annual fundraiser we do every year,” Homan said. “We get to speak to the community about the work we’re doing and just give a sneak peek into our services. This year we’re bringing back a wine tasting that we previously had done.”

Submitted by Trisha Homan: Program Manager Jena Schroepher, Executive Director Trisha Homan, and Board Chair Anna Friese (L-R) are three leaders who look to ensure the continued success and growth of Ivy House.

Strict confidentiality is used by the program to ensure families can get the help they need privately. Homan said the work they do has been received very well by the New Ulm area so far.

“We get a lot of local community support, a lot of donations,” she said. “We get people calling and asking how they can help. We have volunteers who support us. The community has grasped the idea of a Crisis Nursery in a small town and are the reason we can continue to provide our services.”

Recently a full-time child care provider was hired for the house. All staff are properly trained and licensed, but with the demand increasing a full-time presence was needed.

The type of work Ivy House provides puts them in a gray area in terms of classification. Homan said Ivy House is looking to make this clearer on a state level.

“We would love for each community to have an Ivy House,” she said. “We can see the clear benefits our services have for children and families. For that to happen, there has to be a clearer path for licensing. We’re licensed as a children’s residential facility. We are trying to work with legislation to create a license for our service so other communities can have something like us.”

Currently, Ivy House is at a growth point. Homan said she believes eventually the house will operate 24/7. The long-term goal is to spread the Ivy House concept to other towns across Minnesota.

“We are currently the only home-based Crisis Nursery in the state of Minnesota,” Homan said. “Families can utilize us within two hours of Ivy House.”

Those looking to use Ivy House’s services can call the Crisis Line at 507-766-6925. Tours are also available of the facilities. Inquiries for this, donations, or other business matters can be made to 507-354-7626. Ivy House can also be reached by e-mail at trisha@ivyhousemn.org or programs@ivyhousemn.org.