When someone walks through the door of Tri-Lakes Cares, they’re not just another face, not just a number or a problem. They’re a person with dreams, a story and needs.

That’s why Tri-Lakes Cares, a nonprofit that serves northern El Paso County, aims to address all of the needs that a person might have. As a human service hub, Tri-Lakes Cares supports people and families traversing crises or struggles, whether that’s providing groceries, rental assistance or wellness education.

“We work with families when they’re in a vulnerable situation to stabilize them and prevent them from falling off that cliff,” said Bill Lyons, the organization’s director of development and planning.

And that cliff? The cliff of homelessness.

Unlike a shelter, Lyons said, Tri-Lakes Cares strives to address people’s needs further upstream of the problems they may eventually face.

The foremost way Tri-Lakes Cares addresses those potential problems is with its food pantry.

Residents of northern El Paso County needing groceries can visit Tri-Lakes Cares’ free, market-style pantry, at 235 N. Jefferson St., in Monument, to get fresh food, packaged necessities and toiletries.

Tri-Lakes Cares also provides rent, mortgage and utilities assistance, among other housing, medical and transportation programs.

Serving nearly 2,000 families a year, Lyons said that number could continue to surge in the aftermath of the federal government shutdown that ended this week.

“Those in need of assistance will increase,” Lyons said. “The question is, by how much?”

So far, the hub has been able to keep up with the needs that face the community, Lyons said. That’s thanks to the relationships that make up Tri-Likes Cares and its supporting network.

“We are dependent on goodwill with the community,” Lyons said.

Run on community contributions and grant funding from private foundations, Tri-Lakes Cares is less susceptible to changes in government dollars, with a small portion of its money being funneled from federal or state sources.

But it’s not just money that fuels Tri-Lakes Cares’ work; it’s the giving of individual community members who donate their goods, time and effort. Last year, that equated to 10,690 pounds of food items distributed as well as 332,366 hours of volunteer work alongside 62 community partners.

It’s that giving spirit that has allowed Tri-Lakes Cares to meet the 40% growth within its service area over the past 10 years.

“We started as a food pantry and evolved to meet the needs of the community as it’s expanded,” Lyons said.

And those needs can stem from anyone, at any time.

“We really take an approach that supports the dignity of those we provide service to,” Lyons said. “Recognizing any of us could be in that situation with loss of a life, job or illness.”

That’s why, similar to other nonprofits in the region, Tri-Lakes Cares refers to people who use their services as “neighbors” instead of “clients.”

Lyons encourages anyone looking for help to head to Tri-Lakes Cares and get connected with a resource that can address the need, even if it means turning to someone beyond the organization through its robust referral system.

“We’d like the community to recognize we’re here for the entire community,” Lyons said.