Parent & Caregiver Support

Raising children is hard work. Team Up is hosting events, developing tools and compiling resources to make it easier.

Parent/Caregiver Skill Building Workshops

Team Up offers free in-person and virtual workshops across Southwest Colorado to connect caregivers with one other and build skills to support our children, youth and adolescents. Workshops include free dinner and childcare and are meant to help parents and caregivers understand how to navigate challenging topics and situations around youth mental health.

We are currently coordinating events in Ignacio, Bayfield, Durango, and virtually for this Spring. Workshop details are found below. Join our mailing list or follow our Facebook page to stay in the loop!

We know not everyone has the time or ability to attend these events and have gathered trusted sources for additional learning. Keep scrolling for virtual parenting resources you can access on your own time!

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Spring 2026 Parent & Caregiver Workshops

Dinner and childcare are provided at all in-person workshops. When possible, please register in advance so we can accommodate your food, childcare, and interpretation needs. This is an opportunity for parents of all backgrounds, identities, and experiences to come together to connect and learn. We love our multicultural community and aim to support all caregivers with the tools they need to participate; simultaneous interpretation will be available by request! All are welcome and we encourage you to bring a friend so they can see what this is all about!

Boundary Line

with Rachel Turiel Mediator, Facilitator and Nonviolent Communication Coach

  • Thursday, 3/26 from 5:30-7:15pm at 1911 Main Ave, Durango

  • Monday, 4/6 from 5:45-7:00pm on Zoom (virtual)

Effective Boundary Setting

  • Boundaries are neither punishment nor coercion. They are a loving expression of our limits as humans. Come learn how to set effective boundaries with your children with clarity, care and confidence.

In partnership with :

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Encouraging Youth Mental Wellbeing

with Genevieve Travis, MAEC, MSW, LCSW, and BETA Coordinator for the San Juan BOCES

  • Thursday, 4/2 in Durango, 5:30-7:15pm at the Liberty School, 3107 Western Ave, Durango

  • Saturday, 4/25 from 5:45-7:00pm over Zoom

  • Designed for parents who want to better understand what their children are truly going through, this session explores how to shift parenting styles to better support youth mental wellness. Participants will learn to leverage their role as the person who "knows their kid best" while picking up actionable tools to navigate current mental health trends. Please come prepared to share your experiences and concerns in this interactive and supportive space.  

Social Media Logos

with Chris Brown, Social Emotional Programs Manager and CISP Therapist La Plata Youth Services

  • Saturday, 4/4, from 4:00-6:00pm at the Liberty School, 3107 Western Ave, Durango

  • Wednesday, 4/8 from 5:45-7:00pm over Zoom (virtual)

Internet & Social Media Safety

  • Learn supportive tricks for your family’s online safety in our social media infused world, including how to recognize and track hurtful and helpful behaviors.

Understanding & Responding to Children’s Behaviors

with Rachel Turiel Mediator, Facilitator and Nonviolent Communication Coach

  • Wednesday, 4/15 from 5:45-7:00pm over Zoom (virtual)

  • Wednesday, 4/22 from 5:30-7:15pm at Pine River Library, Bayfield

  • Children are not naturally manipulative or demanding. Join us over dinner to explore the ‘why’ behind challenging behavior, leading towards effectively and compassionately collaborating on more life-serving strategies.

Eating for a Happier, Healthier Mind:

Because whats on your plate shapes how you think, feel, and thrive

with Tomas German-Palacios, Founder and CEO, the Heart Focused and Mya Holladay, Blue Heron Farm

  • Thursday, April 16th from 5:30-7:15pm at the La Plata County Fairgrounds, Durango

In partnership with:

  • Discover the powerful connection between what you eat and how you think, feel, and thrive! The food choices you make every day either fuel inflammation, anxiety, and brain fog, or they support calm, clarity, and resilience. Together we will make a quick delicious and nutritious snack! This presentation gives you practical, science-backed strategies to start using food as medicine for your mind, one delicious bite at a time.​​​​​​​​ 

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When Life Ain’t Easy:

Practicing Hard Conversations and Creating Sense of Belonging with Youth

with Kate Suazo, owner of Suazo Equity Consulting, and Anna Suazo, Facilitator

  • Tuesday, April 14th from 5:30-7:15pm at Pine River Library in Bayfield

  • Thursday, April 16th from 5:30-7:15pm at SunUte Community Center in Ignacio

  • This workshop will provide participants with a chance to connect with each other while learning skills to support you in having hard conversations with your youth. By creating a sense of belonging we can better support youth when we need to discuss difficult topics such as; financial literacy, friendship issues, and more. We hope to provide participants with a set of tools that help youth and adults feel and stay connected.

Role Modeling Mental Wellness

with Sydney Donnelly, La Plata County Public Health Suicide Prevention Coordinator

  • Wednesday, May 6th from 5:30-7:15pm at the Ignacio Elementary School

    Thursday, May 7th from 5:45-7:00pm over Zoom (virtual)

  • This workshop will provide participants with a chance to learn about the basic principles of mental health while understanding how learnings can be applied in family settings! Attendees will be equipped with skills and knowledge needed to lead by example in maintaining their own mental fitness. Additionally, this workshop will cover how to talk about mental health with youth as well as its importance. By participating, attendees will gain comfort with the concept of mental wellbeing via discussions, activities, and presentations.

Team Up offers families this growing library of parent and caregiver resources on topics that parents, teachers, counselors, and youth themselves have identified needing support with.

Key topics include:

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Communication

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Internet and Social Media Safety

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Bullying and Peer Pressure

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Youth Mental Health

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Parenting Resources

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Communication and Conflict

  • Much of our household conflict between caregivers and children boils down to challenges with communication. We Team Up with Nonviolent Communication Coach Rachel Turiel to dig into topics like navigating challenging conversations, de-escalating conflict, and finding common ground with your youth.

  • Informative handout from Rachel’s workshop on Navigating Challenging Conversations to build trust.

  • Unicef article to help caregivers approach conversations with empathy and understanding.

  • Resources for caregivers to help kids learn coping and resilience-building techniques.

  • Free online course on conflict de-escalation from ParentGuidance.org

Illustration of three scenarios of harassment: top shows one person smoking and giving directions to another with a headache, middle shows two people laughing and pointing at a third person who is covering their ears and appears distressed, bottom shows a person with glasses holding their head in discomfort.

Bullying & Peer Pressure

  • Workshop slides from local experts Al Wolfe and Taylar Moorehouse that addresses strategies to recognize bulying and peer pressure and act with intention.

  • Resources for parents and carers to understand bullying and take action to support our youth.

  • Quick guide for adults to help prevent bullying and empower youth to develop advocacy skills.

  • Mountain Youth workshop recording showcasing two local experts who provide tools and resources to parents and their youth on how to talk about consent, the importance of developing positive youth-adult and peer-peer relationships, and how we can work together to create a “consent culture.” 

Computer monitor displaying a globe with a lock symbol, representing cybersecurity or internet security.

Technology and Social Media Safety

  • Internet and social media are shaping our society in ways we don’t always understand. As parents who didn’t have this experience growing up, we don’t always know how to support our children with safe and healthy screen and media consumption. We’ve Teamed Up with La Plata Youth Services’ Chris Brown to develop a supportive workshop and gather internet resources so we can learn together how to keep our kiddos safe!

  • View Chris Brown’s Internet Safety and Screen Awareness slide deck here!

  • Family support resources from the National Alliance on Mental Illness

  • NY Times article with recommendations for tools to set safety controls on your child’s devices!

  • Workshop recording on sleep and strategies to improve sleep health from Eagle County organization Mountain Youth.

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Youth Mental Health

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Other Virtual Parenting Resources

  • Find courses on parenting by topic as well as education and therapeutic support to empower and give you hope as you support your child’s mental health.

  • Parent hub for bullying information, laws and policy, and mobile and online safety

  • Sesame Workshop offers a ton of age-appropriate resources on topics important to families.

  • Evidence-based activities to help kids develop emotional intelligence and resist negative peer influence.

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We all can face unforeseen financial, living, and caretaking circumstances. Team Up can connect you with the support resources you need when facing an uncertain situation.

Browse Crisis & Human Services Support Resources

2025 Workshop Impact

Transportation shouldn’t be a barrier to accessing education, resources and opportunities. If transportation gets in the way of you accessing community events like these, check out our resouce page for support!

Transportation Resources

The supports and resources provided by Team Up are made possible by the collaborative work of our Action Teams.

Team Up Action Teams are comprised of people and organizations working toward a common outcome that come together to solve previously ‘unsolvable’ community-identified problems.

Southwest Colorado Action Teams