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Park County Drop‑In Center reports strong open house, plans peer‑support and code‑blue coordination
Summary
The Park County Drop‑In Center held an open house last week with a strong turnout; staff and volunteers are expanding peer‑support offerings, coordinating with HRDC code‑blue warming services, and distributing outreach materials while a peer specialist is on leave.
Jenny Jo Allen said the Park County Drop‑In Center held an open house “last Thursday, and it was great,” drawing a solid local turnout and press coverage. FoodWorks donated food for the event, and volunteers from the Human Resource Development Council (HRDC) have helped sustain center operations while the certified peer support specialist is on leave.
The drop‑in center currently operates Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 10:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Jenny Jo told the council. She said the center has relied on volunteers for day‑to‑day coverage and is exploring peer‑led support groups targeted to local needs, including groups for young adults connected to the Church Universal Triumphant community and family peer support for relatives of people with substance‑use disorders.
Eleanor Wend noted that NAMI’s family‑to‑family program requires trained facilitators and a formal commitment; members discussed pairing volunteer peer support with formal NAMI training or SMART Recovery materials rather than clinician‑led groups. Jenny Jo and other members emphasized that peer support should be clearly labeled as non‑clinical in line with SAMHSA guidance.
Council members also agreed to coordinate drop‑in services with HRDC’s code‑blue/warming‑center schedule on extreme cold days. Jenny Jo said the plan would be to move some drop‑in center activities to the public library’s community room when code‑blue services coincide with normal drop‑in hours, allowing warming‑center staff to focus on overnight and emergency shelter while preserving daytime support groups.
Outreach materials are in circulation: Erica Strickland reported Denise assembled roughly 70–80 mental‑health packets and distributed 40–50 to local health providers, hospitals and schools. Color brochures for the drop‑in center were produced with Rebecca’s help, and additional 988 cards are being sent from the state contact identified in the meeting.
