The 1990s
Successful fundraising efforts on several fronts, combined with new foundation and government grants, helped fuel unprecedented growth and expansion in our organization. All three states experienced growth in existing program areas, as well as some new areas during the 1990s. Goodwill continued to enjoy growth too, with existing stores relocating to new, larger buildings and new stores opening in Butte, Montana and Boise, Idaho.
Goodwill temporary staffing debuts in Boise
We opened Goodwill Staffing Services, a temporary employment agency in Boise, Idaho in 1997. The agency operated as a traditional employment agency, while also providing additional support for people with disadvantages and barriers to employment. We provided assistance with resume preparation and help with improving interviewing skills, in addition to matching candidates with local employers in need of temporary workers. The agency expanded to Nampa, Idaho and continued to grow through the 2000s.
We enter the work-over-welfare arena in Idaho and Montana
Our vocational services in Boise, Idaho began serving welfare recipients in the Boise area in 1999. The Working Solutions program provided soft skills training, job search assistance and work experience opportunities through a contract with the state of Idaho. Shortly after starting the program in Idaho, we were awarded a contract to provide similar services in north central Montana and the WORC program began there. Assisting welfare recipients, some who had experienced generations of poverty, to gain skills and successfully re-enter the workforce became a major mission focus for our vocational services. This was especially the case in Idaho where Working Solutions expanded its territory to eventually serve welfare recipients statewide.
Medallion Medical Care adds to clinical services
1997 brought a demand for skilled in-home nursing and therapy. To fill this need in Cascade County, MT, we created Medallion Medical Care. This added home health care to our existing personal care and Medicaid case management programs, and enabled us to offer a full spectrum of health-related services for homebound, ill, and aging individuals in the Great Falls, Montana area.
Disability day services opens in Wyoming
Since starting Wyoming services in the 1980s, the main emphasis had been on vocational services and on our Casper, Wyoming Adult Day program. In 1999 we saw the need in Sheridan for a more individualized approach to day habilitation services. We opened the Community Access Center where adults with intellectual disabilities could not only gain daily living skills, but also enjoy more opportunities to spend time in individualized activities outside in the community. The program continues to this day, operating from a much larger space and serving many of the individuals who also participate in our residential services.
