Virginia Schmidt

I’ve recently begun working as secretary for Christ Episcopal Church in Cody. Having stumbled into the position through a series of the kind of divine right-place-at-the-right-time coincidences that tend to lead my life experience, I soon learned the roots of this role reach deeper than writing weekly newsletters and making copious copies. The job also facilitates connecting folks to resources in the spirit of churches’ traditional role in communities: Helping serve those in need. 

And so to begin my training, the former (superstar!) secretary for Christ Church, Cheri, invited me to a meeting held at St. John’s Episcopal Church in Powell to learn about First Stop Park County.

First Stop is a local nonprofit dedicated to helping people living in crisis in Park County. Their goal is to ensure folks’ immediate needs are met so they can then begin to build toward stability, financial independence and achieving life goals. First Stop operates under Heart Mountain Free Clinic, which was first founded and opened in Powell in 2008.

Heart Mountain Free Clinic is no longer a physical medical clinic as it once was in Powell and later in Cody. First Stop now acts as the conduit through which folks can still receive the original benefits of Heart Mountain Free Clinic —  free or extremely affordable (maximum bill being $45 out of pocket) health care for those living at 200% of the poverty rate or below (for a one-person household, 200% of the poverty rate or below is anything less than $31,300 annual income). 

With offices now located at Hope Lutheran Church in Powell and 1735 Sheridan Ave., Suite 205 in Cody, First Stop often works with One Health in Cody and Powell as well as other Park County hospitals and clinics to give people the resources to access affordable health care and prescriptions. 

Having one place where folks can go to be connected to all the help that can support them during times of need represents a community-resource-dream-come-true for my dear friend and role model, Dawn Garrison, who founded First Stop. Dawn worked for over 20 years in the Park County health community: Helping bring in millions of dollars in grant money for substance abuse and sexual health prevention programs, educating, resourcing and empowering folks experiencing poverty and eventually serving as director of Heart Mountain Free Clinic. 

By then, Dawn recognized one of the biggest obstacles for people living in poverty was having to go from resource to resource, submission form to submission form, phone call to phone call to try to access what they needed. Oftentimes the resources — be they food stamps or donations, help with housing or paying rent, finding clothes or shoes, or accessing dental or medical assistance — would each come from different entities. For people experiencing poverty, having to find and apply through all these different channels took valuable time away from being able to look for and apply to jobs. 

Dawn’s first attempt at finding a solution — attaining a grant and creating a computer program for people experiencing poverty to be able to access resources in one digital place — wasn’t as user friendly as she’d hoped. Eventually, she visited First Stop Help in Lander and liked what she saw. She replicated their model, bringing First Stop to Park County. 

Part of the First Stop formula is working directly with local churches, and it was an Episcopal Service Corps member, who came to Cody through Christ Church, who helped launch First Stop in Park County. This Service Corps member was also a social worker, and he aptly set up systems to connect Department of Family Services, local churches, the medical community, and more so that one phone call or a single office visit could mean manifold assistance. 

A 2019 study published in the Journal of Social Psychology found that performing acts of kindness — toward friends, strangers and ourselves — significantly boosts happiness. Since we’re all connected, it makes sense that helping anyone also helps us feel better.

“What you’re really looking for is connection,” said Dawn of the search for purpose, which she found through public service. “And that’s the only thing that’s really going to make you happy. Helping others always just made me feel … whole.” 

Dawn continues to serve the whole of our community by teaching the Building a Brighter Future Today class in both Cody and Powell, helping folks connect with the resources, skills and support to transition from poverty into self-empowered sustainability. 

Like a true community servant, Dawn emanates humbly helping others by facilitating spaces and programs that inspire and equip folks to tap into their inherent inner power and potential. 

As a favorite quote of mine from Usrula K. Le Guin’s translation of the Tao Te Ching says: 

“When the work’s done right,

with no fuss or boasting,

ordinary people say,

oh, we did it.”

Any of us can do it. And sometimes we all need help doing it. And sometimes, it’s our turn to give the help. Thank you to lights like Dawn for showing us the way.