DOLORES – Colorado’s 988 mental health support line is preparing an outreach tour through the Four Corners Area next week and is planning an informal gathering for Dolores on Thursday.
The hope is to meet residents, local partners and providers for input on expanding access and building awareness around services provided by the mental health support line.
Anyone can reach the 988 line by dialing the three digits to receive talk support for mental or emotional health and substance use, which is free, confidential and available 24/7 by trained specialists.
Dolores Community Center sessions will be held Thursday from 4 to 5:30 p.m. and 6 to 7 p.m., along with an earlier community session at Fort Lewis College in Durango from 6 to 7 p.m. Tuesday.
Chloe Rekow, an organizer, said the meetings will be a casual space for conversation, offering food and giveaways.
In recognizing Mental Health Awareness Month, the organization is celebrating strong performance numbers – reporting an answer-response time at under 15 seconds for the system. Additionally, the organization points to only about 1-2% of calls are routed to the national backup line, showing they are a top performer among other states.
988 has been the designated number for all crisis lines and platforms since July 2022.
Employees from the service are planning the tour across the state this spring, hoping to engage in listening sessions in communities where the need for support appears greater.
The Southwest Colorado tour is planned for next week, while the group will also be traveling to the northeast and southeast plains, San Luis Valley and Northwest mountains.
988 is national. Anyone who reaches out via call, text or chat can receive care involving specialized services for veterans, youths with high-risk, people speaking Spanish, young adults or for people with hard of hearing or who are deaf.
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