600 E Main Street
Silver Cliff, CO 81252
Phone: (719) 371-3203
Email: Email this nonprofit
Contact: Kim Philia
About
Livelihood in the families of Custer County are at the heart of Defy Gravity Youth Development Center. Defy Gravity, founded in 2009, provides a safe place for youth to develop and grow into confident, mannered, and hard-working adults. The youth are provided with physical fitness, educational, enrichment, and social activities with caring staff who are trained in behavioral modification to engage community connections and relationships. Defy Gravity received its 501c3 status in 2011 and specializes in youth development by focusing on four key areas: Psychological (beliefs about themselves and others); Social (knowing who they and how to relate to others); Wellness (after-school enrichment); and Cognitive Education (how to learn effectively). Kim Philia, the director of Defy Gravity, recognized these increasing community needs and started providing therapeutic care for families. Philia is currently collaborating with the Colorado Office of Behavioral Health to aid the COVID-19 impact by bringing free counseling services for children up to 18 years of age.
Defy Gravity stands for children and families together with Colorado Family Guidance. Together they offer individual, family, couples, and group therapy to aid the emotional impact of divorce and trauma. Colorado Family Guidance, founded in 2017, provides over 500 individual sessions annually, social and emotional health classes, and after-school enrichment for children 6 – 16 years of age. Colorado Family cares for families and children on three levels: Level one instills resiliency to challenges and a healthy mindset as the children participate in proactive enrichment and physical activities. Level two invests into the parent’s lives to build up family trust, acceptance, and engagement. Level three provides high levels of support for parents, such as budgeting, life skills and resource management. These levels of support prevent issues such as out of home placement, declined grades, truancy, student drop-out, depression and suicide. Defy Gravity Youth Development and Colorado Family Guidance are invested in the lives of every family for healthy self-efficacy, resiliency, and unity in our Custer County community.
