A faith-based organization that serves homeless people in Wichita will undergo a leadership change next week.
The Union Rescue Mission is reorganizing its management structure to be in line with other nonprofits. On Monday, former Wichita Police Capt. Doug Nolte will become the new CEO.
Nolte knows the homeless community and its struggles through his law enforcement work. He says he put retirement on hold so he can help those in need.
"I think that when you’re in a position where you don’t have resources, when you’re living day-to-day in an unknown environment, things can be somewhat hopeless. It doesn’t have to be that way," Nolte says.
Nolte ended his 26-year career with Wichita Police a few weeks ago.
“This is an opportunity for me to use that experience of seeing what’s available and what people need, and kind of specialize,” Nolte says. “I jokingly told someone that, “I think it took 26 years for me to finally figure out what I really wanted to do.”
Union Rescue Mission’s executive director, Denny Bender, will retire in the coming months.
Union Rescue Mission started in 1950 and is based at a six-acre campus in east Wichita. The Mission’s 28,000-square foot facility in Wichita provides overnight housing and meals for homeless men, hosts a 12-month addiction recovery and Christian discipleship program called New Beginnings and distributes free food, diapers and infant formula to families and single mothers in need.
A multi-unit residence for men transitioning out of homelessness — called Eagles Wing — is expected to be completed next month.
Follow Deborah Shaar on Twitter @deborahshaar. To contact KMUW News or to send in a news tip, reach us at news@kmuw.org.
