Colorado Resilience

Colorado Resilience was inspired by mothers and fathers who had the lived experience of their families being harmed in the family court, child support, and child welfare systems. Systems that were supposed to protect the best interest of children, instead diminished their safety and wellbeing.

At the core of the problem are policies that fail to protect a child’s relationship with both parents equally. Unfortunately, weak policies corrupt systems with unconscious, implicit, and explicit biases that push a parent, most often the father, away. Children raised in single parent homes are at greater risk of most every societal ill.

Improving child and family wellbeing and resilience starts with recognizing the fact that moms AND dads are equally as important and as safe in the lives of our children.

There is nothing more important than the safety and wellbeing or our children. We know that when children have two parents caring and providing for them, they are most always safer and better off by every measure of wellbeing. We know that moms AND dads are equally important and as safe in their lives of their children. We know that children love, want, and need both parents equally.

Colorado Resilience is leading the push to have policies and systems treat and respect both parents as equals.

The Mission of Colorado Resilience is to improve child and family wellbeing for families where parents separate or were never together. We know parents who work together to love, care, and provide for their children, will have greater family resilience and their children will be statistically better off by every measure of safety, mental and physical health, and wellbeing. 

“It’s easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.”  Frederick Douglas

The most important factor impacting family resilience is when both parents are involved in parenting their child. Nationally, 1 out of 4 children, over 19M live in single parent homes: 82% single mother - 18% single father. Children raised in single parent homes are at greater risks of most every societal ill including higher rates of gun & criminal violence (perpetrators & victims), suicide & mental health issues, child poverty & homelessness, to name a few.

Unfortunately, systems intended to protect Colorado’s children often do the opposite and diminish child safety and wellbeing. Policies commonly pit parents against one another, resulting in pushing a parent, most often the father, away. When emotionally vulnerable parents contest custody and are not respected, seen, or treated as equals, children are put in the middle of their conflict as one or both parents try to harm or even sever their child’s relationship with the other parent. Because policies don’t protect both parent-child relationships as equally important or as safe, children lose every time. Except in cases of proven abuse, two parents are almost always better than one.

Colorado Resilience, a 501.c.3 nonprofit, is dedicated to strengthening family resilience by replacing system practices that foster parental conflict and victim mentalities with programs that promote parental cooperation and hero mindsets. By setting equality in parenting as the cornerstone for protecting both parent-child relationships, children will be safer, healthier, and happier. Children need and love both their parents, just as parents deeply love their children.

Education and early intervention triage programs are designed to empower parents with the services and resources (incl. mental health, addiction, domestic violence) they need to reach positive two parent, co-parenting agreements that minimize conflict and system involvement. The larger chore is to change the financial incentives and reward qualifying parents for maintaining peaceful working relationships with each other for the benefit of their children.

Colorado Resilience believes that investing to keep both parents in the lives of their children, will keep families out of systems and will yield enormous benefits to children, families, communities, and taxpayers. Two parents parenting equals greater child wellbeing, stronger family resilience, and safer, more prosperous communities.