Description
The Mile High Council is the first not-for-profit in the State of Colorado to provide behavioral health services focused upon drug and alcohol addiction.
Our organization consists of a program center in Denver (The Council) and a 24/7 crisis and runaway facility in Aurora (known as the Comitis Crisis Center).
We have directly served over 136,000 people in need over the combined course of more than 50 years. We are currently serving over 2,300 clients with direct services in this year alone.
Our treatment methodology is unique; we not only offer traditional substance abuse and mental health counseling founded on Evidence-Based Practices (EBP’s), but also ties in holistic elements, education, employment, and the arts to address the needs of the whole person.
Unique to our organization is the particular level of investment and programming that we devote to women’s issues, HIV/AIDS education and prevention, and youth homelessness. Listed below are some of the programs that we offer:
1) The Comitis Crisis Center is a 24/7, emergency shelter located on theFitzsimmons Medical Campus in Aurora. The shelter provides crisis accommodations for runaways and families that are in transition. Between 14,000 to 16,000 meals are prepared annually at the shelter. We also administer a 24/7 crisis hotline to address issues ranging from child abuse to youth suicide. A Residential Child Care Facility (RCCF) is located on our campus for homeless and/or substance-abusing youth between the ages of 11 and 21.
2)Project Recovery provides group, individual, and family therapy for persons 12 years and older. Group sessions are 1 ½ hours to 2 hours weekly. We are recognized throughout the state as a leader in providing care, particularly for high-risk and high-needs population groups.
3)Beat the Street targets homeless and at-risk youth with substance abuse, mental illness, and/or co-occurring disorders. We recently partnered with Art Reach to compliment therapy sessions with opportunities to attend classical music performances and tour local museums as a mode of art therapy.
4)Jump Start is a recovery program for those re-entering the community from county jails and the State Department of Corrections. Not only does the program treat the immediate therapy needs of the client, but we also provide wrap-around services to assist with finding a place to live, sustainable employment, and education.
5) ELEMENT, The Mile High Meth Project, and The Gay Wellness Initiative are three service programs that directly service the gay, bi-sexual, and transgender community in Colorado. Programs encourage healthy relationships, recovery from substance abuse, community-building, and HIV/AIDS prevention.
6) A landmark program at The Council that is drawing particular attention is the Miracles program. Miracles is a gender-specific program that provides weekly outpatient treatment programming for women. Using a women-supporting-women model, Miracles specifically addresses substance abuse, mental health, and trauma issues. We also provide opportunities for women to obtain their GED and engage in parenting and anger management classes. Therapy is complimented by holistic elements, such as acupuncture and yoga. At the end of the treatment cycle, the women all work together and create a community quilt as their final project.
This is just a small sampling of the scope of programming and services that we provide to the Colorado community.
