It’s hard to believe we’re already midway through 2026. As we reach the wildflower peak of summer, it’s time to look back at what we’ve planted while planning the future years’ success.

By training volunteers to meet ever-present and changing needs, we’ve maximized our impact to callers of all ages for more than 50 years. And thanks to community support and the continued dedication of Crisis Clinic staff and volunteers, we’re excited to look ahead at whatever 2027 might bring.

What’s Weighing on Thurston and Mason Counties

Executive Director Holly Wetzel says their team regularly monitors the Thurston County Health Needs Assessment survey. This annual report is designed to “illustrate the current health status of a community and monitor its progress over time,” say organizers.

Why dig through dusty statistics, charts, and graphs? Because the survey’s findings echo many of the calls Clinic volunteers receive. These numbers are used to inform training, resource gathering, and planting the seeds of new civic partnerships.

Wetzel and the Crisis Clinic team understand the cyclical nature of crises. “The conditions the people in our community live, work, and age in shape their wellbeing,” says Wetzel, “Someone without stable housing is more likely to be cut off from support systems, more likely to be struggling with their mental health, and more likely to feel like there’s nowhere to turn. When someone in our community doesn’t have affordable safe housing, food security, income, social connection, and access to care, it shows up as stress carried in the body which can escalate into a crisis.”

2025’s Assessment finds that top concerns are homelessness, behavioral health issues, drugs, loneliness, isolation, and violence related trauma. Thurston County adults report experiencing loneliness at a higher rate than even the state average and this might play a role in the region’s increased rate of suspected opioid overdoses.

In Mason County, overdose deaths are a full third higher than the state average. And tackling any solution is tough as the entire county is a designated Health Professional Shortage Area for mental health services, says the Mason County Community Health Needs Assessment.

What Comes Through on the Crisis Line

So how do these reports translate into the real-world? The Crisis Clinic sees it in every call.

Over the first half of 2026, for example, a call might come in for help paying overdue rent. But as conversation continues, volunteers peel back layers to discover someone skipping meals to pay bills, falling behind on utility payments, and experiencing the deep loneliness which comes from being away from friends and family.

“And underneath all of it is the complete exhaustion of holding all this alone, the shame of not knowing how to ask for help, wondering if it is too late to get help, and the fear of what happens if none of it gets solved in time,” explains Wetzel.

“On the crisis line, the request for one kind of resource in a call often becomes someone finally being able have the emotional safety to say how they feel out loud and release everything they’d been carrying on their shoulders,” she continues. “In these calls, while providing emotional and crisis support, our volunteer stays with callers. They work through it piece by piece so the caller has the community resources to support what they need once they get off the phone, and an invitation to call back if they find themselves in an emotional crisis in the future.”

What Changes Because We Answer the Call

Every voice on the line is a seed of hope planted. But the Crisis Clinic’s commitment to anonymity means blossoming success stories are rare.

Rare…but not impossible! Hearing about lives changed is what makes every call worthwhile. Volunteers recently received a thank you call from a single parent who had suffered a relapse and reached out to the Clinic for support. On the initial call, they were referred to a provider and made the effort to follow through and regain control.

“They called back to thank the Crisis Clinic for being there and for the anonymity of our services,” explains Wetzel. “It was that assurance of anonymity which allowed them to be up-front with their struggles for the first time and thanks to our volunteer’s encouragement, the caller believed things would get better not just for themselves, but for their child as well.”

When someone calls the Crisis Clinic, Wetzel explains, it’s less about any one issue and more about the daily conditions people live with that make crisis more likely in the first place. But there is hope. “The need is great and only continues to grow,” says Wetzel. “But we are grateful for our volunteers support our callers at all hours because they have boundless love and compassion for our community, and for our supporters and donors who believe nobody should have to face crisis alone.”

Growth and progress requires the support of our community. If the first half of 2026 teaches us anything, it’s that the Crisis Clinic is up to the task, because these are the volunteers who keep showing up for their neighbors, one call at a time.