Mental health and addiction recovery services provided by Mind Springs Health are now more conveniently located after the organization’s move this week into its new South Grand Avenue location in Glenwood Springs.

Mind Springs in late 2019 purchased the former motorsports dealership and antique mall property at 2802 S. Grand, just south of Berthod Motors.

The 8,500 square feet of renovated space replaces the former long-time Mind Springs clinic location on Colorado Highway 82 between Glenwood and Carbondale.

“The staff here is incredibly excited for this new location and what it means for our clients,” Hans Lutgring, outpatient program director for Mind Springs’ Glenwood area services, said in a news release announcing the move.

The entire building has 16,000 square feet of space. The remainder of that space is being held in reserve for a planned new alcohol and drug detoxification facility that area hospitals, police agencies and government entities have been busy planning for and identifying funding to build.

For now, the facility houses one staff psychiatrist, eight clinicians, five case managers, the program director, marketing staff and the new Mind Springs Foundation.

Lutgring noted that the facility is ADA compliant, and the location is near the Roaring Fork Transportation Authority’s 27th Street Station, making it convenient for bus commuters.

“Not only is the building more accessible, but the space provides more individual offices for therapists to meet with their clients in the spacious group therapy rooms,” he said. “We also have space for therapists to conduct virtual therapy sessions with clients, as we understand that more and more clients are becoming accustomed to, and even prefer, virtual therapy.”

Mind Springs is based in both Glenwood Springs and Grand Junction, with clinics in different communities across the region and the West Springs Hospital in Grand Junction.

The Mind Springs Foundation was formed last year to serve as the philanthropic arm of the organization, explained Stephanie Keister, public relations manager for Mind Springs.

The foundation’s staff of three are also housed in the new Glenwood Springs facility, and will be focused on raising funds for various capital projects, including the new women’s recovery center in Grand Junction, Keister said.

The new Mind Springs office is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, and can be reached at 970-945-2853 (Spanish-speaking line is 970-683-7289).

Recovery team mobilized

Meanwhile, another relatively new service of Mind Springs Health is proving to be successful in battling alcohol and drug addiction, including within the local homeless population.

The Mobile Recover Team is a group of mental healthcare professionals, including case managers and peer specialists, who work to provide immediate assistance to people in crisis due to substance use. That can include getting them connected to treatment services, as well as housing, food and employment assistance, according to a news release.

Since its formation last year, the Mobile Recovery Team has already had 61 referrals between Carbondale and Parachute, and 34% of those referrals have resulted in getting people into treatment, the release stated.

“The people we work with are often in very vulnerable positions,” said Anne Edgecomb, program coordinator for the Garfield County Mobile Recovery Team.

Referrals often come from hospitals, law enforcement agencies or local support agencies, she said.

“Slightly more than 50 percent of our clients are homeless at the time of engagement, and we often go where they are to provide guidance,” Edgecomb said. “That may be the hospital emergency room, the steps of the library where they’re hanging out during the day, a grocery store parking lot, or their home.”

Some of the people who are referred decline assistance, she said.

“Others do become engaged in treatment or are referred to another program that will help them on their path to wellness,” Edgecomb said. “Sometimes, all someone needs is another person who cares enough to help connect them to the resources that are available, with compassion and empathy.”

For more information, call 970-384-4034 or email mobilerecoveryteam@mindspringshealth.org.

jstroud@postindependent.com