COLDWATER, MI (WTVB) – A transitional home in Coldwater for women released from jail is busier than ever.
Tommy’s House, which opened in December of 2016, is named after Tommy Olmstead, who serves as a volunteer chaplain at the Branch County Jail. The rehabilitation program operates out of an older renovated two story home at 50 North Clay Street and offers rehabilitation for drug and alcohol offenders.
Kathy Olmstead is the Executive Director for Tommy’s House and says for many female drug and alcohol offenders, there is no place for them to go for help. Olmstead spoke recently at a meeting of the Coldwater Noon Rotary Club and said there are so many needs that have to be addressed, explaining, for example, that someone can’t live at a homeless shelter if they have a criminal past. She said her phone seems to never stop ringing, whether it be the courts in the area or an inquiry from as far away as Indianapolis.
Women at Tommy’s House are provided a 12-step substance abuse recovery and prevention program. Olmstead also said former clients have returned to assist in counseling and to give encouragement to those preparing to transition to new lives in the outside world.
