Minot, North Dakota (Grand Forks, Minot AFB, Burlington: where to stay, appointed, homes)

[etjaipleure]

Ok, we my husband and I just found out we are being stationed at Minot AFB. I am not excited about it because...well, it's North Dakota. It's cold, there's no beach and it looks really desolate. Anyone want to give me some inside information about Minot? What to do? Where to live? Where to stay away from? Shopping, etc? Also, I am in the mental health field and I was VERY disappointed because Minot seems to be poorly lacking in ANY mental health facilities so I'm not really sure how I am supposed to get a job there. No psychiatric hospitals, no children's homes, no ranches, no behavioral systems...I'm confused. Are there no children who need case workers or mental health there?

[DaninEGF]

Originally Posted by etjaipleure

Ok, we my husband and I just found out we are being stationed at Minot AFB. I am not excited about it because...well, it's North Dakota. It's cold, there's no beach and it looks really desolate. Anyone want to give me some inside information about Minot? What to do? Where to live? Where to stay away from? Shopping, etc? Also, I am in the mental health field and I was VERY disappointed because Minot seems to be poorly lacking in ANY mental health facilities so I'm not really sure how I am supposed to get a job there. No psychiatric hospitals, no children's homes, no ranches, no behavioral systems...I'm confused. Are there no children who need case workers or mental health there?

As far as the mental health field....my wife is from Minot and before she got her MSW in Social Work at UND in Grand Forks she worked for a number of years at the Dakotas Boys Ranch as a therapist. A friend of her from town is a LISCW at the Dakota Boys Ranch. They are located closer to Burlington just west of town and a tad north of Burlington. The health system there in Minot is Trinity....so while I do not know this for a fact...I am sure there are some mental health positions there. My wife is a LISCW therapist at the hospital in Grand Forks and they employ several other therapists.

Minot itself is a growing city now with all the people coming to the base and with the recent oil boom to its west. We have relatives in the Minot area and frequently visit. It has changed over the years and there are several new businesses coming in and the mall there is actually one of the nicer ones in the state. Roosevelt zoo in Minot is very nice. Most of the newer construction is out south and west parts of town...the south hill....but I know we have a Minot realtor who can talk about that as I dont know as much about new housing there. But overall Minot is not nearly as bad as you may think just looking at the map. Yes it is isolated....but the town is nice.

Dan

[AndersonRM]

Give Minot a chance before you make up your mind not to like it. It's one of the truly hidden secrets of peace, happiness and serenity you'll find.

[magiccity]

Good Evening and Welcome to Minot/Minot AFB,
As a Minot native, ask away for any questions you may have. As for mental or childrens ranch, we have a place west of town called the Boys Ranch that is coed. This place is for children with some type of learning disabilities. It's a great place for the children. Now that summer is here, there are free concerts at the parks 3 times a week. The largest zoo is here in Minot, the State Fair, and the National Scandinavian Festival is held here. Anyway, what would you like to know?

[gearedtowardssalad]

Well, it's the perfect place for meth. That's all I can really say about it.

[soundforlanguage81]

Originally Posted by gearedtowardssalad

Well, it's the perfect place for meth. That's all I can really say about it.

You might as well have "internet troll" spray painted all over you. Wow, singling out an area one dislikes by giving it the deadly "meth" tag...geez, no one's gone that far before.

[etjaipleure]

Hmm, I'm not sure what I'd like to know. I guess, how cold does it really get? Is there a summer? What to do to relax and for fun? I am a little disappointed about here only being one or two places for me to get a job. No CPS case workers or MHMRs? I'm not sure how I'm supposed to work there. I have never lived up north before, either. It just seems so FAR FROM ANYTHING! I like the beach, warm weather, sun year round...this does not seem like anywhere I would like to be at all. Not sure how I'm going to adjust.

[DaninEGF]

Originally Posted by etjaipleure

Hmm, I'm not sure what I'd like to know. I guess, how cold does it really get? Is there a summer? What to do to relax and for fun? I am a little disappointed about here only being one or two places for me to get a job. No CPS case workers or MHMRs? I'm not sure how I'm supposed to work there. I have never lived up north before, either. It just seems so FAR FROM ANYTHING! I like the beach, warm weather, sun year round...this does not seem like anywhere I would like to be at all. Not sure how I'm going to adjust.

I did forget there is north central human resource center in Minot...one of several divisional locations in the state.

North Central: Human Service Center: Department of Human Services: State of North Dakota

Here is a list of all the different state web addresses for MHMR services..check out North Dakota. I know nothing about this area of work so dont know how little there is compared to other states.

http://mhmr.ky.gov/files/urls.doc


In terms of weather....yes you will have a hard time. I workout indoors at the local gym or YMCA. Yes we do get cloudy days that go on forever in the fall and winter....but also we can get bright sun periods. Cold....well in most years expect a few nights of -30 ish below zero with high temps -5 F below zero... it can vary week to week....some days you can be near 32F in Dec-Feb.... and on a rare occasion hit 40F during the winter. But most days are below freezing certainly and snow cover in most years sticks around. Snow amounts are usually not that great....average around 40 inches...though last year was way way above normal in Minot.

The shortest days of the winter will see sunrise close to 830 am and set close to 500 pm. We do have very long days in the summer with longest days seeing sunrise by 530 am and set around 10 pm. And yes we have summer...with 80s and a few 90s quite common Jun-Aug with muggy conditions at times as well. Some summer days are cooler and wet with highs in the 60s-70s...

Dan

[Sunset_Va]

I'm not from Minot, but have been there. Reading your postings , you have automatically doomed Minot, and seem narrowed as to what work you will do. Your misery will follow you when you move.

I take its not a permanent move, but not changeable. If that's the case, its up to you to either make the best of it and go with the flow, or hate each and every day and age early.

Wish you the best.

[gearedtowardssalad]

Originally Posted by soundforlanguage81

You might as well have "internet troll" spray painted all over you. Wow, singling out an area one dislikes by giving it the deadly "meth" tag...geez, no one's gone that far before.

I speak from experience.