In her lifetime, Katheleen McCluskey has served in the U.S. Army, been married, widowed and raised two daughters.
She’s been homeless, addicted to methamphetamine and encountered conflicts with law enforcement.
In January 2023, she went to jail but now has turned her life around. McCluskey has been “clean’’ for 17 months, works full time and has her own apartment.
“I am proud,’’ she said, grateful for the support that she has received from Veterans Trauma Court and Next Chapter, a UCHealth-led organization based in Colorado Springs that provides behavioral health and psychosocial support for veterans and their family members at no cost.
Both organizations were instrumental in helping her find her way to sobriety and well-being.
“I’m content with my life,’’ said McCluskey, who recently found out she is going to be a grandmother.
Healthy Swings 2024
On June 12, UCHealth teamed up with players from Denver’s pro football team for Healthy Swings, UCHealth’s annual charity home run derby. During the fun-filled event, the gridiron stars, along with local media celebrities and social media influencers, raised $120,000 for partners of Next Chapter. Batters swung for the fences at Coors Field. The farther a ball was hit, the more money UCHealth will donate to partners of Next Chapter. They include Mt. Carmel Veterans Service Center, which provides wrap-around services for veterans in Colorado Springs; NAMI – the National Alliance for Mental Illness; and Silver Key, an organization that serves older adults.
Some of the football players included wide receiver Courtland Sutton, defensive linemen Matt Henningsen and Jared Allen, cornerback Pat Surtain II, quarterback Jarrett Stidham, running back Jaleel McLaughlin and outside linebackers Baron Browning and Jonathon Cooper. This is the 6th year of Healthy Swings and UCHealth has raised more than $650,000 to benefit various Colorado non-profit organizations.
McCluskey attended the event at Coors Field to witness the festivities.
“Between Vet Court and Next Chapter, I would not be here without them. I wouldn’t. I would still be out, I’d still be on the street, I’d still be out there using,’’ she said.
The 2024 charity event at Coors Field bolsters support for veterans
She has been working for a year as a full-time security officer for the Springs Rescue Mission, a shelter for unhoused people. It’s a place McCluskey once called home before she ended up on the street, addicted to meth. While at the Criminal Justice Center in Colorado Springs, a fellow inmate told her she should apply for Veteran’s Trauma Court, an innovative program of the 4th Judicial District to route veterans to adjudicate cases that might have been influenced by service in combat.
Established at the height of conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, Veterans Trauma Court addressed behaviors among military members that placed them in conflict with law enforcement.
“There were a number of veterans coming back here to southern Colorado, straight out of combat, who were not transitioning very well,’’ said Damian McCabe, UCHealth’s director of behavioral health and military affairs in southern Colorado and Next Chapter’s program director. “At the time, we looked at some of those behaviors as maladaptive coping behaviors.’’
Behaviors may have included high-risk driving, high-speed motorcycle riding, violation of gun ordinances or acting out in the community against themselves or at local entertainment establishments.
When McCluskey heard of Vet Court, as she calls it, she applied, and was accepted. A clinician from Next Chapter attends those court hearings weekly and helps to assist veterans who have behavioral or psychosocial needs.
Through Vet Court and Next Chapter, McCluskey got out of jail, was admitted to Cedar Springs for inpatient rehabilitation, followed by enrollment in a partial hospitalization program there. She attends counseling sessions and has met all of the requirements of Vet Court.
“Katheleen is not in jail today. Katheleen is home. Katheleen is working. Katheleen is feeling good about herself. Katheleen is not struggling with acute psychiatric distress and her challenges around substance use. She’s able to process what happened to her during the time that she was in the military,’’ McCabe said.
“Katheleen is still involved with the court system, but through Next Chapter, she’s been able to meet all of the stipulations that have been put on her and she’s going to graduate from the Veteran’s Trauma Court rehabilitation program,’’ McCabe said. “Katheleen is a model for how Next Chapter can help some of the veterans with health and wellness needs, avoid some of the complications like the judicial system and do it at no cost with the support of some of the providers here.’’
Two years ago, the Colorado Legislature set aside $1.5 million annually for Next Chapter, with funds administered by the Behavioral Health Administration. In three years, Next Chapter expected to see 700 veterans and/or family members. Two years into the program, nearly 1,000 veterans and family members have received support.
“We are very grateful for the foresight of the legislature and the support of the BHA, and we have already exceeded our goal by 40% and have currently served nearly 1,000 veterans and family members with a full year left to complete our pilot period. We expect to double the goal set for us by the end of our initial program effort,” McCabe said.
Next Chapter has these primary goals:
- Raise the community’s awareness around veteran suicide to reduce the high rates of veteran suicide in our community
- Engage in a deliberate call to action campaign — promotions, TV ads, speaking in public to raise awareness about Next Chapter service, veteran suicide prevention and how to access to care for veterans and their families.
- Provide stigma-free, no-cost direct patient care, paying for therapists to provide acute psychiatric care, social welfare support, drug and alcohol residential and outpatient rehabilitation care, and direct psychiatric care in an emergency.
- Evaluate the efficacy of the program and make recommendations for enhancement and expansion, as needed, an independent assessment done by the University of Colorado – Denver.
For people like McCluskey, Next Chapter has been a lifesaver. She’s committed to sobriety and to work.
“It is amazing to know that my life has changed so much,’’ she said. “I am proud.’’