How We Started
Founder Laura Snyder
Mountain Home Montana was founded in 1998 by Laura Snyder, who brought together our first Board of Directors. Bonnie Hamilton donated her home to the program in 2000, creating a legacy that has served over 660 young mothers and children.
Our 3 bedroom home began serving young, teenage mothers and welcomed our first young mother on August 7, 2000. In 2001, the home grew to its current capacity with room for 6 young mothers and their children. Over the years, we began to notice a change in the age of young mothers needing our services and now serve young mothers age 16-24.
We broke ground on the new Permanent Supportive Living Apartments in 2010; a dream of ours since we began. The apartments provide much needed additional housing in Missoula for low-income and homeless populations, allow us to serve more young mothers and children, and offer a stepping-stone to independent living for young mothers. We opened the apartments in June of 2011. In 2013, with the help of an Emergency Solutions grant and United Way of Missoula County, we added an Emergency Bedroom in the basement of our house. Altogether, we provide enough housing for 12 of Montana’s most vulnerable families.
In 2013, we became a licensed Mental Health Center and are now able to provide much needed therapy and specialized support to Mountain Home Montana mothers.
Please listen to our beloved Bonnie Hamilton tell her story: