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Links to past Mental Health Minutes are below.

 

The Health Partnership readies the launch of the HOPE Initiative to Strengthen Mental Health Support in Routt County

Steamboat Springs, CO— The Health Partnership (THP) is excited to announce its leadership role in launching a two-year pilot of the HOPE Initiative (Helping Others Through Peer Engagement), a groundbreaking community-based program designed to fill critical gaps in mental health support across Routt County.

The HOPE Initiative was created in response to the growing need for accessible, localized mental health resources for individuals who are struggling but not in acute crisis. This innovative program will provide:

• 24/7 HOPE Line staffed by trained peer support specialists – individuals with lived experience with mental health challenges
• Resource referral and navigation for community members
• In-person peer connection and respite support
• Community Safety Team to expand mental health awareness and response
• Marketing and outreach efforts to ensure broad community awareness and engagement around behavioral/mental health

“We are proud to be the organization bringing this much needed resource to our community,” shared Brittney Wilburn, Executive Director at The Health Partnership. “When a broad coalition of community partners and concerned community members identified this important gap in mental health resources in the Yampa Valley, our staff and Board stepped up and embraced managing the effort.”

Community partners include Yampa Valley Medical Center- UCHealth, Northwest Colorado Health, Health Solutions West, REPS (Reaching Everyone, Preventing Suicide, Warhorse Ranch and the Yampa Valley Community Foundation.

Routt County, like many mountain and resort communities, continues to experience significant challenges related to mental health access, isolation and stress. While emergency and clinical services remain essential, there is a growing recognition that community-based support, human connection and early intervention are critical parts of preventing a crisis before it occurs.

“The launch of the HOPE Initiative reflects what is possible when organizations and community members come together around a shared vision,” said Soniya Fidler, Board President of The Health Partnership. “This is about meeting people in the moments before crisis, and standing alongside them with early, compassionate support and understanding, without stigma.”

The Community Health Needs Assessment, completed earlier this year continued to highlight behavioral health as a critical community issue. Twenty five percent of survey respondents identified increased access and capacity for mental health crisis services as a key priority​. Additionally, 11% of survey respondents needed mental health support but didn’t access it​.

“REPS is honored to collaborate on a program that strengthens the behavioral health safety net across the Yampa Valley,” said Mindy Marriott, Executive Director of REPS. “The HOPE Initiative represents the kind of coordinated, community-driven support our region has been calling for, and we are grateful for every partner helping bring this vision to life.”

Thanks to the Yampa Valley Community Foundation (YVCF) and many generous donors who recognize the need for this safety net program, significant funding has been raised toward the launch of the HOPE Initiative, Additional community investment is essential to cover the first two years of operations, and donations are being accepted into the HOPE Initiative Fund at YVCF.

“HOPE is about strengthening the safety net that stretches across our valley,” stated Traci Hiatt, Director of Donor Relations at the Yampa Valley Community Foundation. “By leveraging lived experience and peer support, the HOPE Initiative will meet people where they are and provide compassionate, culturally responsive care when people need it most.”

To learn more about the HOPE Initiative or to make a donation, please reach out to Brittney Wilburn at bwilburn@ncchealthpartnership.org or Traci Hiatt at traci@yvcf.org.

 

This is the continued Mental Health Minute, beginning July 7, 2025.

• Dec. 28, 2025 — Mental Health Minute — The HOPE Initiative from The Health Partnership
• Dec. 14, 2025 — Mental Health Minute — Standing Together: Men’s Work and “Walking Each Other Home”
• Dec. 8, 2025 — Mental Health Minute — The Gut and Brain Connection
• Nov. 30, 2025 — Mental Health Minute — Your Voice Matters
• Nov. 24, 2025 — Mental Health Minute — Seasonal Affective Disorder
• Nov. 16, 2025 — Mental Health Minute — Time Change Blues 
• Nov. 10, 2025 — Mental Health Minute – Navigating Changes in Midlife for Women
• Nov. 3, 2025 — Mental Health Minute — Stress Management in Teens
• Oct. 28, 2025 — Mental Health Minute — Day of the Dead
• Oct. 19, 2025 — Mental Health Minute — Sacred Moments: Finding the Sacred in the Ordinary 
• Oct. 13, 2025 — Mental Health Minute — Talk Saves Lives: Empowering Our Community to Prevent Suicide
• Oct. 6, 2025 — Mental Health Minute — Cost of Poverty Experience (COPE) comes to Northwest Colorado
• Sept. 29, 2025 — Mental Health Minute — Get Immediate Support with the 988 Colorado Mental Health Line
• Sept. 22, 2025 — Mental Health Minute — Theater as an Outlet
• Sept. 14, 2025 –Mental Health Minute — Connection in Times of Adversity
• Sept. 7. 2025 — Mental Health Minute – Sharing stories and building bridges at new event
• Aug. 31, 2025 — Mental Health Minute — Message from Yampatika
• Aug. 25, 2025 — Mental Health Minute — Mental Health After a Critical Incident: How to Help, What to Expect, and Taking Care of Yourself
• Aug. 17, 2025 — Mental Health Minute: Uncertainty Is Part of Life — But It’s Heavier for Some
• Aug. 11, 2025 — Mental Health Minute — Re:generation: A Christ-Centered Path to Lasting Transformation
• Aug. 3, 2025 — Mental Health Minute — Steps to Help Save A Life
• July 28, 2025 — Mental Health Minute — Steamboat Kids & Phones
• July 24-2025 — Mental Health Minute — Starting with the basics
• July 15, 2025 — Mental Health Minute – Helping Others through Peer Engagement and The HOPE Initiative
• LINK to all previous Mental Health Minutes — DECEMBER 1, 2024, THROUGH JUNE 23, 2025