February Peak News
Outreach Case Managers Dom and Jenna stand outside a tent in Five Points. Photo by Evan Semon.
Urban Peak's Youth Outreach
Ever wondered how Urban Peak’s programs work? Fatima, our Drop-In Center and outreach supervisor, recently sat down for a chat about street outreach; what it is, what the challenges are, and how we will continue to evolve to better meet our youths’ needs.
“Outreach is just making sure that people know about our services and that people who need them are getting those services,” Fatima said. “That can look like finding folks in their camps, meeting people in a shelter, partnering with other agencies or educating our neighbors on the streets.”
In practice, this means our SOLE (Street Outreach to Large Encampments) team goes into surrounding neighborhoods a few times a week, bringing gift bags of essential items like toiletries and snacks for anyone in need. After an initial contact, the team continues coming back to build relationships with any young people who could benefit from Urban Peak’s services. But it takes time.
“Outreach isn’t a successful thing just the first time,” Fatima explained. “Especially with vulnerable youth, it’s making sure they can trust us, that they know we’re reliable, that when we say we’re going to show up at this space that we are there.”
Many forces outside the control of Urban Peak staff – everything from violence to sweeps to youth moving on for reasons we’ll never know – can make it hard to build trusting relationships over time. But despite the challenges, we’re always looking for ways to improve our programs.
Jamie Kilcoyne, Board Member and CPA Extraordinaire
Urban Peak board member Jamie Kilcoyne, CPA, was recognized late last year by the Colorado Society of CPAs at the CPAs Make a Difference celebration for his excellence in the field and his ongoing dedication to supporting and advancing his community. He created the K Financial Foundation to merge his work with his passion for helping those in need, and he frequently takes employees and family members on community service projects both locally and abroad. We are thrilled to work alongside him to advocate for the most vulnerable among us. Congratulations Jamie!
Peak Spotlight
One of the DIC's posters celebrating Black History Month
February is Black History Month, and Urban Peak staff across our programs have come up with creative and interesting ways to celebrate Black beauty and brilliance with our youth.
The Drop-In Center is decorated with a variety of posters celebrating Black culture and individuals who’ve changed the game, ranging from artists and musical icons like Kendrick Lamar to inventors, actors and civil rights activists such as Marsha P. Johnson. Our Outreach Case Manager, Jenna, papered the walls with bios of these leaders, giving our youth, staff and visiting partners a chance to learn more about Black history.
Meanwhile at Rox’s Place, Peer Navigators Kadejah and Celeste set up a weekly meetup for youth to celebrate their Black culture through food, music and activities. Oftentimes, they end up deep in conversation about topics such as social issues, generational trauma cycles, mental health and how they feel about being Black in the US.
“The coolest things we noticed about these meetings were how excited youth were to speak on their culture and how much they appreciated a space to decompress and process heavier issues without judgement or retaliation,” Celeste recounted.
We're so glad to have caring staff doing the most to celebrate our youths' rich and diverse cultural backgrounds, and for creating safe spaces where they can just be themselves. Black History Month may be coming to an end, but our work to create a world where everyone can thrive is ongoing.
Partner Highlight
Rep. Leslie Herod speaking at an Urban Peak event
“Founded and funded by Denver, Caring for Denver Foundation was created on November 6, 2018 when seventy percent of Denver turned an idea into a reality.”
Initially envisioned by former Urban Peak board member State Representative Leslie Herod (who is the Foundation’s board chair), the Caring for Denver Foundation was created by a successful city ballot initiative in the 2018 election. Now the largest mental health foundation in the state of Colorado, their mission is to “address Denver’s mental health and substance misuse needs by growing community-informed solutions, dismantling stigma, and turning the community’s desire to help into action.”
The work of Caring for Denver can be broken down into five main categories: finding alternatives to jail for people in crisis, providing high-quality care that fits diverse needs, working directly with communities to increase access to care, connecting young people with resources, and responding to constantly shifting landscapes of homelessness and COVID-19 in Denver. Beyond those five core areas, they also award grants to organizations that show demonstrated efforts to address the Denver community’s mental health and substance misuse needs.
Urban Peak has worked closely with the Caring for Denver Foundation to provide mental health and substance misuse resources to our youth wherever possible. We’re grateful to have partners like Rep. Herod and the Caring for Denver Foundation who recognize the importance of early intervention and make it possible for us to enhance our mental health support for youth.
Congresswoman Diana DeGette Brings Together Local Mental Health Experts
Urban Peak CEO Christina Carlson recently participated as a panelist during a roundtable conversation with Congresswoman Diana DeGette (CO-01), alongside mental health leaders Dr. Charles Smith from SAMHSA, Dr. K. Ron-Li Liaw from Children‘s Hospital Colorado, and representatives from Denver Health and DDPHE. The conversation, titled Americans in Need: Responding to the National Mental Health Crisis, centered around how young Coloradans are being impacted by the mental health crisis and what steps lawmakers can take to address it.
Many young adults have reported significant declines in their mental health, especially since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. A shortage of mental health professionals, along with a lack of insurance coverage and the prohibitive cost of treatment are just a few reasons why Americans choose to delay or not seek care. This is especially true among young adults and minorities. In order to combat this crisis, lawmakers have and should continue to pass bills that address systemic inequities in the healthcare system, as well as prioritizing resources for populations that are most at risk and expanding access to care for all.
"No one in this country who is concerned for their mental health should also be concerned whether they can get the help they need," said Rep. DeGette. We couldn't agree more, and we’d like to thank Rep. DeGette and her office for the opportunity to speak about the disproportionate impact homelessness has on youth mental health, as well as for facilitating this incredibly important conversation.
Terri Taylor Day!
Last Thursday, February 24th, 2022, was officially declared to be Terri Taylor Day by Mayor Michael Hancock in recognition of her receiving the Minoru Yasui Community Volunteer Award, an honor given to those who volunteer their time and energy to make a unique impact in their community.
Urban Peak is so lucky to have Terri as a board member and tireless advocate for all youth experiencing homelessness. Congratulations!
Youth Spotlight
Gator is a client you know you’ll never forget. He is a huge part of the Shelter community and has been making amazing strides toward his goals in 2022. From helping mount TVs to cleaning up all of the trash in the neighborhood, Gator always jumps at the chance to help out at the Shelter and has become somewhat of a handyman around here.
He even helped make the holidays special by hand-building all of the bikes that were given out on Christmas morning!
Gator is hoping these skills will pay off, and is currently in the process of applying for a work experience at Lucky Bikes. We are all rooting for Gator and cannot wait to see him succeed!
