‘They transformed seven people’s lives’: Behavioral health tax dollars support life-changing work, reduce strain on community resources

On Aug. 30, 2024, Isabelle, Paul and their five children shared a home-cooked meal. It had been over a year since they had last eaten dinner together in their Larimer County home.

“It was the best day!” said Isabelle, using a chosen pseudonym to protect her family’s privacy. She can’t remember what she cooked because she was a “jumble of emotions,” just grateful to be together after enduring life-altering trauma.

“To say 2024 was a crazy hard year” is an understatement, she said. “On every front imaginable, we were facing a horrible onslaught of craziness.”

The family voluntarily split into two homes to separate their children, and participated in hundreds of hours of assessments, legal discussions, therapy and more after becoming aware of “abhorrent” sexual behavior from the two eldest toward their youngest sibling. 

Isabelle knew they desperately needed help but was afraid of facing possible judgement – or worse yet, losing her children. Buoying the courage to call Child Protection Services, Isabelle was surprised to be met with kindness, compassion, and a network of ready supporters. 

Thus started their journey toward accountability, reconciliation and healing with the 8th Judicial District Attorney’s Office Juvenile Diversion program. It is one among 72 organizations that have received $14.7 million in grants from the Larimer County Behavioral Health Services Impact Fund. 

Sales-and-use taxes collected in Larimer County, approved by voters in 2018, go toward expanding and enhancing access to behavioral health care services. In addition to the grants, tax funding went to building and operating the Acute Care facility at Longview campus, 2260 W. Trilby Road. It is open 24/7/365 to people of all ages who need behavioral health urgent care, crisis stabilization, substance-use treatment, and more.

Juveniles must accept responsibility for what they’ve done, be willing to participate in treatment, and have family support to be in the diversion program for sexual offenses. The time commitment is case-dependent and ranges from six months to two years. Through partnerships with community nonprofits and direct-service agencies, a team works with juveniles to address the most difficult and trying circumstances a family may navigate.

Audra Eakins is a diversion specialist whose work is made possible by behavioral health tax dollars in the form of an Impact Fund grant. Without that funding, her role might not exist, and she wouldn’t have had the opportunity to work with Isabelle’s family.

The majority of Eakins’ work focuses on juvenile sex offense, teen-dating violence, and sexting cases. The juvenile, parents or guardians, attorney, therapists and others work toward a plan that prioritizes safety for all, the victim's needs, preventing harm through intensive behavioral health supports, and not becoming a repeat offender. Through this model, the intent is to reduce the strain on criminal justice resources and empower youth to address the root causes of their behavior. 

More often than not, the juveniles and families Eakins works with have had little to no behavioral health support. Youth who go to court, and don’t have the support provided through a diversion program, have a higher recidivism rate – which in turn becomes an additional burden for the criminal justice system and taxpayers. 

“Our goal is for them to be successful. It is rare that a youth fails out of diversion and goes into the court system,” said Robert “Ax” Axmacher, chief deputy district attorney, who oversees the juvenile unit, problem-solving courts, and diversion programs. About 90% of those in diversion programs complete them, he said.

Juvenile Diversion works with youth ages 10 to 18 who are referred to the program after being taken into custody or receiving a citation. Five years ago, the Larimer County District Attorney’s Office handled 800 to 1,000 juvenile cases per year, 350 to 400 of which were handled by Juvenile Diversion. They see about half as many cases now, Axmacher said, but they are the most complex in nature.

Juvenile brains are still developing, and a punitive model doesn’t benefit society in the long-term, Axmacher said. To prevent criminal behaviors from happening in the future, youth have to do the hard but necessary work to examine their actions, learn new ways to cope and respond to complex emotions and, ultimately, make them right.

It would be easier to plead guilty in court and do community service than participate in a diversion program, but, “What benefits society is a model that addresses accountability and underlying causes,” he said.

Axmacher, Eakins and Isabelle were all grateful to live in a community that values and invests in behavioral health. Absent that funding, Larimer County would be a different and less vibrant place. 

Before reuniting their family, Isabelle and Paul turned their home upside down – changing where everyone slept and redecorating every room in the hopes of minimizing the trauma of what happened in those spaces.

Back under one roof again, things feel good for Isabelle and Paul’s family. The eldest son is a “different human,” who is helpful and thoughtful, and the eldest daughter has a growing self confidence. The five siblings enjoy each other more and are all working together.  

As she shared her story in January 2025 by phone, they could be heard chattering in the background, patiently waiting to play in the snow. Isabelle gave them permission and told them homemade bread and butter would be waiting for them when they came in from the cold.

Isabelle still struggles to wrap her mind around what happened but is grateful for how far they’ve come. There was no way forward, she said, except through accountability and support – from Child Protection Services, Juvenile Diversion, Savio House and more along the way. 

“To say I support it (Juvenile Diversion), I do more than that.” Isabelle said. “They transformed seven people’s lives for the better.”