WASHINGTON FOUNDATION — The Yay Foundation

Thank You, Dennis and Phyllis Washington Foundation!

Thank you for taking the time to learn more about YAY! for the Hi-Line — a year-round direct behavioral health and wellness program designed to reduce stigma, build community, and expand access to care in Havre and across Hill County. Presented by The YAY! Foundation, this evidence-based intervention delivers trauma-informed programming to one of Montana's most underserved rural regions, where suicide rates are among the highest in the nation and culturally responsive wellness services are limited or nonexistent.

We created this page specifically for the Dennis and Phyllis Washington Foundation to offer a clear look at our organization, our proven Montana track record, and the impact this program will have on the residents of the Hi-Line. Led by Founder and CEO Aidan Park and invited directly by the HELP Committee (Havre Encourages Long-range Prevention) and the Hill County Suicide Awareness Coalition, this model has been refined through 40+ successful programs nationwide — including three consecutive years in Lincoln County, Montana, invited annually by Lincoln County Public Health, and a paid contract with Larimer County Behavioral Health Services in Colorado. We look forward to bringing this proven, replicable rural wellness model to Havre and building a lasting partnership with the community.

About Our Program

YAY! for the Hi-Line — Havre is a year-long behavioral health and wellness program that meets residents where they are — with humor, storytelling, and community. Rather than a one-time event, this is a sustained year-round intervention designed to build lasting connection, reduce stigma, and open pathways to behavioral health support in a region where those pathways are limited or unfamiliar.

Every month, participants and community members have somewhere to go — an open mic, a workshop, a showcase, a resource fair — a low-barrier, high-warmth space where showing up feels good and asking for help stops feeling scary. This is how YAY! works: not through one big splash, but through the sustained rhythm of a community coming back together, month after month.

Program Timeline

August–September 2026 — Community Groundwork
Participant recruitment, community outreach, and partner coordination with HELP Committee, Hill County Suicide Awareness Coalition, Montana Actors Theatre, and Boys and Girls Club. Local venue and sponsorship confirmations. Behavioral health resource fair partner coordination.

October 2026 — First Community Showcase & Weeklong Workshop
A weeklong trauma-informed comedy and storytelling workshop for 12 local community members — ordinary Hi-Line residents (not comedians) — culminating in a live community showcase. The showcase features workshop graduates telling their own stories on stage alongside a headliner comedian, paired with a behavioral health resource fair with 6-10 local partners. Programming is offered on a suggested donation basis to remove cost as a barrier.

November 2026 – March 2027 — Monthly Trauma-Informed Open Mic
Once a month, at a local Havre venue, YAY! hosts a trauma-informed open mic in partnership with Montana Actors Theatre and community partners. These monthly gatherings sustain community connection through the long Montana winter, provide ongoing arts engagement, and give participants a space to keep telling their stories.

April 2027 — Second Community Showcase & Weeklong Workshop
A second weeklong workshop trains 12 new community members, culminating in a spring community showcase with a second behavioral health resource fair. Workshop graduates from October may return as featured performers or peer facilitators.

May–September 2027 — Continued Monthly Open Mics & Year Two Planning
Monthly open mics continue throughout the summer months. YAY! and local partners coordinate participant follow-up, evaluate program outcomes with Dr. Erin Baker PhD, and begin planning for Year Two — including expanded partnerships with Hill County Public Health, potential expansion into surrounding Hi-Line communities, and long-term sustainability development.

Our Current Year-Round Community Programs

YAY! Foundation currently operates year-round community wellness programming in eight sites across five states, in partnership with public health departments, tribal councils, foundations, and community coalitions. Each program is community-invited, locally led, and delivered in ongoing partnership with organizations already trusted by the residents we serve.

Montana
Libby, MT — In partnership with Lincoln County Public Health. Now in Year 3.

Colorado
Loveland, CO — In partnership with Larimer County Public Health.
Fort Collins, CO — In partnership with Yarrow Collective.
Durango, CO — In partnership with the Colorado Health Foundation. Now in Year 3.
Towaoc, CO — In development with the Ute Mountain Ute Youth Leadership Council.

New Mexico
Aztec, NM — In partnership with the LOR Foundation.
Farmington, NM — In partnership with Sasha's Rainbow of Hope.

New York
Ellicottville, NY — In partnership with the Trauma Informed Coalition of Cattaraugus County. Now in Year 2.

Additional Year-Round Partnerships
NAMI Orange County — Successful completed year-round programming partnership.

One-Off Programs
In addition to our year-round community programming, YAY! delivers approximately 20 additional comedy and storytelling programs each year with schools, colleges, universities, tribal communities, public health departments, recovery organizations, veterans' groups, senior programs, and behavioral health coalitions across the country.

Research Data

13 programs, 546 participants served across comedy shows, empowerment workshops, and recovery cohorts
4.83/5 average overall experience rating
92.5% felt more connected to their community
86.8% more likely to seek mental health support if needed
86.4% felt more comfortable discussing mental health openly
4.93/5 — highest single program rating (Radiant Futures API Comedy Night)

Since 2024, The YAY Foundation has used comedy and storytelling as a behavioral health intervention across 13 programs and 546 participants — comedy shows, empowerment workshops, and long-term recovery cohorts serving rural communities, LGBTQ+ populations, Asian & Pacific Islander communities, and people in recovery. The results are remarkably consistent: participants report an average overall experience rating of 4.83 out of 5, with 92.5% feeling more connected to their community, 86.8% reporting they are more likely to seek mental health support if needed, and 86.4% feeling more comfortable discussing mental health openly. These outcomes hold across dramatically different settings — from a sold-out first-ever comedy event in rural Colville, Washington, to a 13-week recovery cohort in La Plata County, Colorado, to an Asian & Pacific Islander comedy night in Orange County that achieved the highest single rating in the portfolio at 4.93/5. The strength of this data isn't any one standout number — it's that comedy and shared storytelling produce the same measurable shift in help-seeking behavior and community connection no matter who the audience is or where the event happens.

Letters of Endorsements

AMERICAN FOUNDATION FOR SUICIDE PREVENTION ORANGE COUNTY
FIRST NATIONS, FARMINGTON, NEW MEXIC O
NATIONAL ALLIANCE ON MENTAL ILLNESS , ORANGE COUN TY
FOUR CORNERS ALLIANCE, DURANGO, COLOR ADO
SAN JUAN COUNTY BEHAVIORAL HEALTH, F ARMINGTON, NEW ME XICO
NATIONAL ALLIANCE ON MENTAL ILLNESS, WHEELING WEST V IRGINIA (For YAY! to the Veterans Pro gram)
MENTAL HEALTH ASSOCIATION ORANGE COUNTY
RADIANT FUTURES , ORANG E COUNTY
THE PURPOSE OF RECOVERY, ORANGE COUNTY

Video Samples

Below is a short video from YAY! for Libby that offers a glimpse of what this programming looks like in a rural Montana community — the workshop process, testimonials, the participants finding their voices, the community showing up, and the joyful, honest, connecting energy that defines every YAY! program. What you will see in Libby is what we are ready to bring to Havre.

Laugh RX, held in 2024, brought together API, LGBTQ+, youth, and mental health advocates for a wellness event centered on breaking stigma and fostering connection. Participants rated the event 4.9 out of 5 and reported up to 18% improvement in key mental health markers, including connection to community, confidence, and self-understanding. YAY! for Orange County will build on this success, using our proven model of integrating dynamic speakers and comedy-driven programming as powerful tools for mental health advocacy and measurable impact.

YAY! delivered a stand-up comedy and storytelling program at the American Legion in Durango, Colorado — training local community members to develop and perform their own original comedy sets exploring recovery, mental health, and lived experience. The program culminated in a community showcase held at the American Legion, drawing veterans, first responders, individuals in recovery, and community members together for an evening of joyful, honest, connecting storytelling.

The American Legion partnership is meaningful. It signals that YAY! is trusted in spaces where veterans, first responders, and rural community members gather — spaces that historically have been hard for behavioral health programming to reach. The video below offers a glimpse into what this program looked like in Durango — the workshop process, the participants finding their voices, and the community showing up to hear their neighbors' stories.

Participant Testimonials

"Thanks to Aidan and the YAY Foundation, I've connected with people more deeply than ever before. There's still a huge stigma in the veteran community around mental health and seeking help — but comedy breaks that down. It opens the door to talk, to laugh, to grow."
— Beth Glasgow, Montana

"I was coming out of a really dark time and almost didn't show up for the workshop. But I'm so grateful I did. It was exactly what I needed. This kind of experience changes people — one at a time — and gives us something to take back out into the world. Something joyful. Something healing."
— Ryan Williams, Commander, American Legion

"I just finished the best week with Aidan. It was amazing to see him help people work through their life experiences and bring the comedy of those moments to the stage — even people who didn't think they were funny or wanted to perform. Our small town didn't really know what this would be, but it turned into a truly powerful event. It built confidence, created belonging, and reminded us all that we're not alone."
— Hillary, Director, Recovery Café

"The YAY Foundation did a fantastic job. I'm on the NAMI steering committee and we helped bring this to our town. The turnout was way beyond what we expected. More importantly, I think it opened up a conversation around mental health in a new way. It was funny, real, and left a lasting impression. If we host this again, they're absolutely invited back. It was transformative for our community."
— Chris, NAMI Steering Committee

"I'm a recovering alcoholic with almost six years of sobriety. Humor has always helped me get through, and this gave me a place to bring that humor into my story — raw, honest, and real. We got to laugh about some really hard stuff. That matters. It's a big part of how I've come this far."
— Aaron Schenk, Participant, YAY! for Recovery

"When I met Aidan Park in 2020, I was in a dark place. I was struggling with depression, anxiety, and the suicide of a close friend. I felt directionless. After a few open mics, I joined Aidan's workshop — and it changed everything. He showed me how to use humor to process my story. I got a standing ovation the first time I went on stage. That moment was life-changing."
— Nick Kynett, Participant