Supporting Mental Health Recovery

The Lotus House
Enriching Activities
The Lotus House follows the internationally accredited Clubhouse Model to offer an intentional community for adults living with mental illness to have a place of belonging.
Residential Services
Discover Independent Living
Breakthrough House is dedicated to helping residents who have been diagnosed with a mental illness lead fulfilling and enriching lives through a variety of services.
Payee Services
Find Financial Security
For members diagnosed with a mental illness, it can be difficult to maintain your financial independence due to medical bills and other expenses.

Empowering independent, impactful lives

Here to Help People Who Live with Mental Illness

Breakthrough House, Inc. is a nonprofit community agency established in 1978 to support the recovery of individuals with mental illness by providing services, supports, and opportunities to improve the quality of their lives. Through the efforts of staff and volunteers, interaction with peers, and community involvement, individual needs are met, social and vocational skills are restored, and self-esteem is strengthened, encouraging adult men and women who participate in our programs to contribute their talents and abilities to the benefit of themselves and others as they live, learn, work, and play.

“I started being the better me at Breakthrough House … the me I was always meant to be”

-Keith

“When I came to Breakthrough House I felt like I was home. I move around more, engage with others and feel better about myself”

-Willie

“I feel accepted and appreciated. I feel like it’s real at the Clubhouse. The staff work hard to help the members get what they need”

-Peter

Our History

A student at the University of Kansas, searching for a way to meet the internship requirement for her Master’s Degree in Social Work, decided to pursue starting a support group for persons in Topeka recovering from mental illness. She discussed her idea with the director of the local Mental Health Association and with others who shared her vision, and together they initiated weekly meetings at her house. What began as a small network for patients and former patients from Topeka State Hospital, the Menninger Clinic, and other therapeutic settings has grown to become a full-fledged community of mutual support.

Our Goal

Our goal is to empower individuals with mental illness to function more independently in their social, living, and working environments and to secure decent, safe, and affordable housing for them in Shawnee County. The people we serve are on a journey toward recovery from mental illness. Our philosophy is to meet them where they are, to accept them as they are, and to walk side-by-side with them on that journey—supporting them, empowering them, working in partnership with them to achieve their goals for independence and employment.