Celebrating the Legacy of the Suicide Prevention Coalition of Colorado and Embracing the Future

Introduction:For over 25 years, the Suicide Prevention Coalition of Colorado (SPCC) has been a beacon of hope, advocacy, and collaboration in our state. It is with mixed emotions that we announce SPCC will be formally dissolving in 2026. This decision comes after careful deliberation by our Board of Directors and reflects a strategic choice to transition our work into the capable hands of our partner organizations and statewide efforts. We know that this news may prompt sadness or uncertainty. SPCC has been a passionate community and a source of strength for so many. However, we make this announcement in a spirit of celebration and optimism. SPCC’s story is one of success: we have achieved much of what we set out to do, and the landscape of suicide prevention in Colorado is far stronger now than when we began. This announcement will walk through SPCC’s history and accomplishments, explain why we are taking this step, and outline how our mission will continue moving forward.

Our Story: 27 Years of Advocacy and CollaborationSPCC was born out of necessity and compassion. In the late 1990s, Colorado faced a stark reality. Suicide rates were alarmingly high (in 1998, Colorado had the 6th highest suicide rate in the nation), yet there was little coordinated action to address it. In 1999, a group of determined citizens,  including grieving parents, mental health professionals, and community leaders, came together to change that. Their vision was to create a statewide coalition that could unite all who were working to prevent suicide, share resources, and speak as one voice to drive change. From this vision, the Suicide Prevention Coalition of Colorado was formed.

Early Milestones (1999–2009): In the early years, SPCC operated entirely with volunteer leadership and minimal funding, but with an abundance of passion. A key early focus was pushing for government recognition of the issue. SPCC members advocated fiercely for the creation of the Colorado Office of Suicide Prevention (OSP), which was established by the state legislature in 2000. Although OSP started small (just one staff member at first) and could not engage in lobbying due to being a state office, it became an essential partner for SPCC. We worked hand-in-hand: SPCC provided the grassroots advocacy muscle that OSP, as a government entity, could not, and OSP provided data, expertise, and program implementation for ideas that SPCC championed. This public/private partnership set the tone for our approach: collaboration between nonprofits, state agencies, and the community.

Throughout the 2000s, SPCC built a network of members across Colorado consisting of concerned individuals and over 25 local organizations from the Western Slope to the Eastern Plains. We hosted community meetings, started an e-newsletter to share resources, and developed the first statewide Suicide Prevention Resource Directory. By connecting previously siloed efforts, SPCC helped foster a sense of a statewide movement. In these years, SPCC also laid the groundwork for later legislative efforts by raising awareness. We organized annual awareness events during National Suicide Prevention Week, lit candles at the Capitol for those lost, and trained local advocates in how to talk to their elected officials about suicide. Slowly but surely, the stigma around talking about suicide in public forums began to ease.

The Advocacy Era (2010–2020): Entering the 2010s, SPCC sharpened its focus on advocacy at the state Capitol. The year 2012 was a turning point. SPCC volunteers, alongside two courageous legislators (Rep. Matt Jones and Sen. Linda Newell, each personally touched by suicide), crafted and helped pass HB12-1140, the first Colorado law in memory to directly address suicide prevention. This law mandated that information about suicide risk and resources be provided in hospital emergency departments statewide. The logic was simple and powerful: people who survived suicide attempts often ended up in the ER, yet many families and even healthcare providers had little knowledge of how to respond or connect those patients to help. HB12-1140 changed that by putting life-saving information into the right hands at the right time. SPCC’s role in this victory was pivotal. We organized testimony from loss survivors who movingly conveyed why the bill mattered, and we mobilized dozens of citizens to contact their legislators in support. When the Governor signed the bill, it validated our model of citizen advocacy.

Buoyed by that success, SPCC went on to champion a series of significant bills in subsequent legislative sessions:

●      SB14-088 (2014) – This law created the Suicide Prevention Commission of Colorado, a formal body to advise the state on suicide prevention and facilitate public-private partnership on the issue. SPCC was instrumental in designing the commission, ensuring it included diverse voices (clinicians, community members, loss survivors) and that it reported annually to the legislature to maintain accountability.

●      SB16-147 (2016) – Also known as the Zero Suicide bill, it resulted in Colorado’s first statewide comprehensive suicide prevention plan. It set aspirational goals for reducing suicides and improving training for healthcare systems. SPCC’s advocacy helped secure nearly unanimous support for this bill,  a notable shift given that a few years earlier suicide prevention was often a politically sensitive topic.

●      SB18-272 (2018) – This law expanded suicide prevention training and education in Colorado’s K-12 schools. It provided grants for schools to train teachers and students in recognizing warning signs and how to connect to help. Alongside it, SB18-114 (2018) created a pilot program to strengthen life skills and resilience for young people, as a preventive approach. These efforts were in response to rising youth suicide rates, and SPCC brought many youth voices to the Capitol to support the cause.

●      HB23-1007. Requires All post-secondary schools (public and private) to print on student ID cards the phone number and text talk number for the 988 crisis number, with the ability to include other local or campus numbers as appropriate

During these years, SPCC’s Advocacy Committee grew active and adept, meeting regularly to set priorities and plan strategy. We developed “fact sheets” and policy briefs (often using data kindly provided by the OSP), held stakeholder meetings to gather support, and sent out Action Alerts to our membership when key votes were happening. In effect, SPCC became Colorado’s grassroots lobbying arm for suicide prevention. From 2012 to 2020, several other important bills passed with SPCC’s support (covering topics like improving training for mental health professionals in suicide assessment, funding community prevention grants, and restricting youth access to lethal means). Because SPCC was volunteer-run, we often had to concentrate on just 1–2 bills per year, but our “success rate” was strong – legislators came to see us as a knowledgeable, persistent, and compassionate force at the Capitol.

A highlight of this era was recognition and collaboration on the national stage. The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP), a national leader in suicide prevention advocacy, took note of our work. AFSP’s Colorado Chapter and SPCC began partnering closely. SPCC leaders attended AFSP’s annual Advocacy Forum in D.C. to learn and bring best practices back home. In 2018, AFSP honored SPCC’s Advocacy Chair with the Field Advocate of the Year Award for outstanding advocacy. This was not only a proud moment for SPCC, but it strengthened our connection with AFSP’s resources and expertise, enabling us to further professionalize our approach.

Another signature initiative born from collaboration was Colorado Suicide Prevention Day at the Capitol. In late 2017, our advocacy chair and AFSP’s regional director had a lightbulb moment: what if we held a State Capitol “Hill Day” for suicide prevention, similar to AFSP’s national Hill Day, but with an even broader coalition? They reached out to Mental Health Colorado and NAMI Colorado to join in, and in February 2018 the first Suicide Prevention Day at the Capitol took place with four organizations (SPCC, AFSP, MHC, and NAMI) co-sponsoring. The event was powerful. Advocates of all ages shared their stories with legislators, a display of over 1,000 pairs of shoes on the Capitol steps honored the lives lost to suicide that year, and lawmakers of both parties attended to express support. The four-way partnership was unprecedented. The collaboration persists to this day, growing every year. It became a model of unity: instead of each organization hosting separate advocacy days for mental health, suicide, etc., we combined forces, demonstrating that preventing suicide is truly a shared cause. This unity made a strong impression.  Indeed, by 2020, it was not unusual to see legislators from both sides of the aisle publicly speaking about their personal connections to suicide during hearings,  a sign of stigma giving way to understanding.

Professionalizing and Expanding (2021–2025): SPCC entered a new phase in 2021 by hiring a professional lobbyist for the first time. Up until then, all lobbying was done by volunteers juggling advocacy with day jobs. Our volunteer advocates achieved a lot, but there were limits to what a small team could cover. With a professional lobbyist on contract (made possible by increased donations and a few grants), SPCC gained eyes and ears at the Capitol full-time. This meant we could track dozens of bills instead of a handful, respond in real-time to amendments or last-minute developments, and engage in the nuanced negotiation that happens behind the scenes on complex legislation. The difference was dramatic: in 2021, SPCC supported three bills that all passed into law, in 2022 five bills passed, and in 2023 another five bills were signed by the Governor. These included legislation integrating suicide prevention into broader behavioral health reforms and improving access to mental health care, reflecting how our focus had grown broader as we recognized the intersections of issues. By 2024, SPCC was weighing in on bills related to youth firearm storage (as a suicide means reduction strategy), insurance coverage for mental health, and more. We weren’t always the lead organization on each issue, but we became a respected voice in coalitions ensuring suicide prevention stayed part of the conversation. We continue to be active during the 2026 Legislative Session. It is bittersweet that some of our final advocacy efforts were among the most impactful, capping off a legislative record that we are truly proud of.

Crucially, SPCC never lost sight of the “coalition” in our name. We strengthened ties with parallel efforts in mental health and substance abuse, knowing that siloing issues can hamper progress. SPCC joined the Behavioral Health Partnership, a consortium of stakeholder organizations in Colorado’s mental health and substance use field, to ensure suicide prevention had a seat at that table. The Behavioral Health Partnership’s mission is to raise awareness and improve systems for mental health and substance use through unified action, and it includes groups such as Mental Health Colorado, the Colorado Behavioral Healthcare Council , the Colorado Providers Association, NAMI Colorado, the Colorado Psychiatric Society, the Colorado Psychological Association, the Colorado Mental Wellness Network, and more. SPCC became an active member, collaborating on policy priorities that overlap with suicide prevention. This partnership exemplified the direction of the field, breaking down issue silos in favor of holistic approaches to behavioral health. It also provided a glimpse into a future where SPCC’s mission could be carried on within a larger collective framework.

Why We Decided to Dissolve SPCC:Given this rich history of impact, why dissolve now? The answer lies in what we have described above: our mission is now woven into many places, and that’s a success. SPCC’s Board engaged in a strategic review in 2025, reflecting on our relevance and effectiveness in a changed environment. We noted several key points:

●      Mission Accomplished: The core objective that spurred SPCC’s creation, making Colorado take suicide seriously and building coordinated prevention efforts has been largely achieved. Where once there was little recognition, now there is robust infrastructure. The state has an Office of Suicide Prevention with multiple staff and programs. There is a statewide Suicide Prevention Commission. Schools and healthcare systems are increasingly mandated to implement suicide prevention protocols. None of this existed when SPCC began; now it’s standard.

●      Resource Considerations: SPCC has always “punched above its weight” as a small nonprofit. But running a nonprofit has costs: financial (filings, insurance, website, etc.) and human (the labor of administration). Our board and volunteers have managed this for years out of love. However, we must be pragmatic; sustaining a standalone organization takes energy and money that, if our mission is largely being served elsewhere, might be better spent directly on programs or advocacy through those channels. We reached a point where the Board asked: Could the funds and volunteer time we use to sustain SPCC yield more benefit if applied to our cause in a different way? Increasingly, the answer was yes.

●      Transition in Leadership: Many of SPCC’s long-time leaders, folks who have been with the coalition for a decade or more, were considering stepping back around this time for a variety of reasons. We realized that replacing that cumulative experience would be challenging for a small organization like ours. Rather than risk a decline in effectiveness, we saw an opportunity to intentionally place our efforts into existing organizations with professional staff and stable infrastructure. This is a way to ensure continuity of the work without placing the burden on finding new volunteers to manage an entire nonprofit from scratch.

●      Focus on What Works: SPCC’s greatest contributions have been as a convener and advocate. We don’t provide direct services like counseling; we influence those who do or the policies that enable those services. Over time, much of that convening can be done in partnership with others or by others. For example, the Colorado Office of Suicide Prevention now regularly brings together regional coalitions and leads the statewide strategic plan, roles SPCC played more heavily in the past. On the advocacy side, organizations such as AFSP have grown their Colorado grassroots network substantially, and general mental health advocacy groups are including suicide prevention asks in their agendas. The niche that SPCC filled is simply broader now. Rather than clinging to a niche that is disappearing, we choose to embrace the wider movement that we helped foster.

After weighing these factors, the Board unanimously agreed that dissolving SPCC in 2026, and doing so thoughtfully and transparently, is the best way to honor our mission and our supporters. We view it not as a sign of defeat, but as a strategic evolution.

Ensuring a Smooth Transition:The dissolution of a nonprofit involves practical steps and we are approaching those with the same thoroughness that defined our advocacy. Here is what to expect:

●      Timeline: We have targeted June 30, 2026 as the effective date of dissolution. Until that date, SPCC remains an active organization. We will use this period to wrap up ongoing projects and celebrate our history. Legal dissolution papers will be filed with the State of Colorado and IRS accordingly.

●      Legislative Advocacy Continuity: SPCC’s Advocacy Committee has coordinated with the Behavioral Health Partnership and AFSP to ensure that advocacy efforts in 2026 and beyond will not lose momentum. Our professional lobbyist has been retained through the end of the current session and is working closely with partner organization lobbyists to hand off any necessary duties thereafter. The advocacy issues we care about (like improving the 988 Mental Health line, funding suicide prevention in schools, etc.) are all shared priorities with at least one other group, so champions remain. We have also contributed to a Legislative Policy Guide that will be shared with partner advocates, summarizing SPCC’s stance and learnings on key issues over the years.

●      Programs and Initiatives: While SPCC doesn’t run ongoing direct service programs, we do have initiatives (like the Bridging the Divide annual conference since 2010 and the iCare Packages for hundreds of loss survivors) that we want to see continue. We are in talks with a few statewide organizations that might integrate these initiatives into their portfolio. We will announce the final “homes” for these initiatives on our website once confirmed, so the community knows where to find them going forward.

●      Asset Distribution: By law, any assets of SPCC must be used for tax-exempt purposes in line with our mission upon dissolution. We are happy to report that thanks to prudent financial management, SPCC has some funds that will be put to good use. The Board has resolved to allocate a portion of our funds to support advocacy efforts at the state which could include a 988 Colorado Mental Health Line license plate campaign. This potential campaign would create a special Colorado license plate featuring the 988 number and a message of hope, with proceeds benefiting the Office of Suicide prevention. While SPCC won’t be around to see it through, we are committing seed funding to whichever partner organization takes up this idea.

SPCC has also launched an iCare Package catalyst grant opportunity.  Suicide prevention coalitions, coroners offices and victim service organizations can now apply for funding to kick off their own iCare Package initiative in their area.  Applicants will agree to follow the Suicide Loss Care Package Recommendations[1]  developed by the SPCC and the Postvention Workgroup of the Suicide Prevention Commission. Application Link.

Finally, SPCC supports the continuation of an annual convening for suicide prevention professionals. We are currently in discussions with several organizations to explore opportunities for sustaining an event similar to the Bridging the Divide: Suicide Awareness and Prevention Summit beyond SPCC’s leadership.

These decisions will be finalized in a board resolution and shared publicly for transparency.

●      Records and Knowledge Transfer: We have 27 years worth of experience, from advocacy playbooks to educational materials. Rather than shutter and risk that knowledge being lost, we are taking steps to preserve it. Our historical records, including meeting minutes, reports, and research, will be archived. We are exploring donating our archives either to the Colorado State Library or the Office of Suicide Prevention so that future advocates and researchers can access the history of suicide prevention efforts in Colorado. Key documents will also be made available in PDF form on our website before we shut it down. We will also compile contact lists and introductions so that local coalitions or individuals who used to rely on SPCC for connection know whom to contact at various agencies for assistance.

●      Membership and Volunteers: We consider our members our most precious asset, and we want each of you to remain engaged in this cause. To facilitate that, we will provide all current members with a list of organizations, volunteer opportunities, events, and advocacy groups you can join or support. Whether your interest is in public policy, community education, supporting attempt survivors, or bereavement support, there will be an avenue for you. We’ll highlight groups like AFSP (which has a field advocate network and Out of the Darkness community walks), local suicide prevention coalitions (many counties have their own, often supported by OSP), mental health alliances, the Office of Suicide Prevention, and local commission workgroups, and more. Our goal is that no SPCC member feels “orphaned” rather, you are simply moving from under one umbrella to another, or even several others. We also encourage you to stay in touch with each other. The friendships and professional connections made through SPCC can and should endure.

●      Communications: We will keep our website online throughout 2026 with a static announcement page that outlines what happened and where to find ongoing resources. This page will include the full timeline of SPCC’s history (much of which you’re reading now) and clearly point to partner organizations’ websites for next steps. We will also post a public FAQ about the dissolution. Our social media accounts will post the key updates and then eventually be closed at the end of 2026.

Carrying the Legacy Forward:Though SPCC as an organization will come to an end, the legacy we leave is deeply ingrained in Colorado’s approach to suicide prevention. Our DNA is in the laws that have been passed, the programs launched, and the partnerships formed. It’s in the collective awareness that suicide is preventable, and everyone has a role to play. We want to highlight a few ways in which SPCC’s legacy will live on:

●      Stronger State Infrastructure: The Colorado Office of Suicide Prevention (OSP) now has a solid footing and receives state funding each year, something that early SPCC advocates fought hard for. OSP will continue to coordinate statewide strategy, from public awareness campaigns to community grant programs. SPCC’s close collaboration with OSP over the years helped shape those programs. Going forward, OSP and the Commission will be a key convener of suicide prevention stakeholders, essentially fulfilling one of SPCC’s original purposes at the government level, but with ongoing input from citizens.

●      Advocacy in New Forms: The fight for better policies will certainly continue. Former SPCC advocacy committee members are already involved in the Behavioral Health Partnership’s policy workgroup, as well as volunteering with AFSP’s State Capitol Day and Mental Health Colorado’s policy council. This means the expertise and passion developed in SPCC’s advocacy work will benefit other advocacy efforts. Moreover, the Colorado Suicide Prevention Commission (which SPCC helped create) remains active and will carry on making policy recommendations to the legislature and Governor, serving as another avenue for advancing ideas that SPCC might have championed in the past. We encourage everyone to support these channels: sign up for action alerts, attend town halls, and keep telling your stories to leaders. Your voice is as powerful as ever.

●      Local and Grassroots Efforts: Colorado today has a far more extensive grassroots network than it did 25 years ago. Many counties have suicide prevention coalitions or task forces (some of which sprang up with SPCC’s mentorship or encouragement). These local groups are not going away. In fact, they will benefit from a tighter connection to statewide partners. If you were an SPCC member primarily to stay connected and informed, we urge you to plug into the OSP Commission Workgroups. The work on the ground is more important than ever and is where many of SPCC’s values live on.

●      Continued Focus on Lived Experience: One of SPCC’s guiding principles was elevating the voices of those with lived experience, be it loss survivors or attempt survivors. That ethos has spread. Today, most major conferences and committees in Colorado’s mental health sphere include representatives with lived experience of suicide. SPCC leaders have often filled those roles, courageously sharing personal stories to inform policy and practice. We trust that the individuals who have been champions in our coalition will continue to do so in other venues. Organizations and loss survivor groups remain active; they’ll continue to need leadership and participation, and we anticipate SPCC alumni will be among those leaders.

●      Memorializing Our History: While moving forward, we also want to preserve the history. The lessons learned by SPCC like how to successfully lobby for change, how to build a coalition, how to foster collaboration  are valuable for future movements. By archiving our documents, we ensure that SPCC’s experience can guide future advocates. Perhaps a student writing a thesis on suicide prevention in 2030 will delve into the SPCC archives and draw inspiration. Or a new coalition in another state might read about our organization and glean ideas for what they can do. In this way, SPCC’s influence can extend beyond our direct activities.

Conclusion: A Message of Gratitude and HopeAs we close this chapter, we want to directly address everyone who has been part of SPCC’s story. Thank you. Whether you were a founding member who met around a kitchen table in 1999 to dream of a coalition, or you just joined last year to help with an event,  you have contributed to something truly meaningful. Thousands of lives in Colorado have been touched by suicide prevention efforts that you set in motion. There are people alive today because of a program or policy you helped put in place. That is a remarkable legacy.

The work of saving lives will continue, and it needs all of us. If SPCC has taught us anything, it’s that community and collaboration are our greatest strengths. Suicide is a complex issue that no single person or organization can solve alone. But when communities unite,  when state offices, nonprofits, clinicians, schools, businesses, faith groups, and individual citizens all come together, we make progress. SPCC was an embodiment of that unity. Now, we pass the baton to the larger community, confident that unity will persist and grow.

As of this announcement, Colorado stands as a model for other states. We have shown how a grassroots coalition can influence state policy and public attitudes. We’ve shown how to integrate suicide prevention into a broader behavioral health movement without losing focus on the distinct needs of suicide loss and attempt survivors. And we’ve shown the importance of humanizing this issue and putting faces and stories to the statistics, which ultimately moves hearts and minds.

We know that dissolving SPCC may feel like an emotional ending. But we encourage you to view it as an evolution. The seed that was planted in 1999 grew into a strong tree, and that tree in turn has spread seeds far and wide. Those seeds are thriving as new initiatives, organizations, and policies. It’s time to let them grow under the open sky, with our nurturing support from the side.

In the words often attributed to the writer (and survivor) Robert Anderson: “Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.” We choose to smile, proudly, at what SPCC accomplished and what it will continue to inspire. And we smile knowing that each of you reading this will carry a piece of SPCC with you into whatever comes next.

From all of us at the Suicide Prevention Coalition of Colorado: thank you for 25 years of trust, teamwork, and tireless effort. Let’s keep working together through different means to achieve the day when every Coloradan knows that help is available, hope is real, and suicide is preventable. Our coalition ends, but our community and our commitment live on.

With heartfelt gratitude and hope,The Board of Directors of SPCC

 [1]This link will need to be updated following a vote on 4/17 adopting these guidlines

For questions or further information about SPCC’s dissolution or to find out how to stay involved in suicide prevention efforts, please refer to the FAQ above or contact us at info@suicidepreventioncolorado.org. This announcement will remain available on our website through 2026, and we will continue to update it with any new information on the transition.