Laurie Stolen, Former Behavioral Health Services Director for Larimer County
North Regional Council member since 2019
Laurie Stolen joined the North Regional Council in 2019. Her role as Director of Behavior Health Services for Larimer County brought extensive experience to the Council, which had been focused on youth development and well-being since 2005. Laurie shared “it was terrific to connect with my other council members, brainstorm with them, and benefit from everybody’s perspectives.”
In 2020, the North Regional Council concluded multi-year grants to North Range Behavioral Health and SummitStone Health Partners, two organizations supporting in-school mental health programming. The Council had recommended more than $600,000 to these organizations since 2018. Laurie shared the Council funded them because their large size meant “they had the capacity to reach students that other organizations weren’t poised to reach.”
By 2022, the Council refined its focus area to youth mental health and convened six leaders in the field. Laurie shared the Council had “heard how much need there was, making it difficult to narrow down to just one or two organizations. We were so impressed by all the work of these dedicated providers that it only made sense for us to divvy up the dollars and show our support.” The convening was a launching pad for the Council to recommend grants to seven youth mental health programs and preventative initiatives including organizations like North Range Behavioral Health and La Cocina. Despite the smaller size of these grants, there was a strategic value to increasing the geographic impact of the Council’s dollars across the region.
In 2023, the Council continued its support of youth mental health by recommending more than $230,000 to 11 youth-serving organizations. The Council valued its partnerships with these organizations and Laurie emphasized the importance of maintaining good relationships through strong and consistent communication with grantees.
In an effort to stay informed on the changing needs of the region, in early 2024, the Council convened nonprofit leaders to learn about community challenges. The Council considered how to most effectively address the diverse and growing issues shared at the convening and selected financial literacy as its new focus area. By addressing financial literacy, the Council hopes communities can proactively prevent other issues such as food insecurity and mental health challenges. From Laurie’s perspective, it is an a up-stream approach that “supports a number of social determinants of health.”
When thinking about the future of the North Regional Council, Laurie hopes it continues improving access to services for those with the greatest needs in the community. She hopes the Council continues to keep the mission of the Penroses at heart. For new council members, Laurie encourages them to find the meaningfulness of joining the philanthropic legacy of El Pomar, as she has.
