Families in Colorado Springs, Monument, Fountain, Falcon and the rest of the Pikes Peak region can work with a Blackburn mentor by video. Each person has one dedicated mentor, meets weekly or more often in Mountain time, and stays in touch by text and phone between sessions. Our team is in Los Angeles, so every Colorado Springs session happens online, and that is part of why it works for families who move.
A military town under Pikes Peak
Colorado Springs is shaped by the military installations around it and by the defense, aerospace and space operations work that clusters near them. Garden of the Gods, Cheyenne Mountain and Pikes Peak are part of everyday life, and many young athletes come here to train seriously at altitude.
That means many families here move often, many young people grow up around service and discipline, and many teens have a parent who is deployed, in the field or working long shifts.
Colorado Springs by the numbers
El Paso County covers most of the Colorado Springs metro, and its census figures say a lot about what families are dealing with (U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2024 1-year, via Census Reporter).
- 15.6 percent of adults are veterans (85,526 people, county level). That is a large share, and it means many teens are growing up in families shaped by deployments and moves, and many young adults are veterans working out a civilian path.
- A median age of 35.5 (county level). The county skews young, with a lot of households raising teenagers and a lot of people in their twenties starting out.
- 42.8 percent of adults 25 and over hold a bachelor’s degree or higher (county level). Families here tend to take college and career planning seriously, which is where a mentor’s weekly follow-through helps.
- A mean commute of 24.6 minutes (county level). Sprawl from Monument to Fountain and long drives to the bases make a session at the kitchen table easier than another trip across town.
- A median home value of $486,000 for owner-occupied homes (county level). Rising housing costs mean more young adults rent with roommates or stay at home longer, and a plan for moving out matters.
Constant through a move
Military families may relocate every two or three years, and summer PCS season can land right before a new school year. Each move means a new school, new friends and a new routine. A mentor who works by video stays the same through all of it. The student keeps one adult who knows their goals and history, at the same weekly time, from Colorado to the next duty station. Our guide on building teen confidence has ideas for helping kids settle in.
When a parent is deployed
With one parent away, the other is often running the household alone. A mentor does not replace either parent, but weekly sessions and midweek check-ins give a teenager structure and someone outside the family to talk goals with. The parent at home gets regular progress updates, and with the family’s agreement a deployed parent can be copied on them when communication allows.
Young adults choosing a path
Young people in the Springs often weigh options that families elsewhere might not: enlisting, an officer path, civilian work in defense and aerospace, college or a trade. A mentor helps them look at each honestly:
- What daily life is really like in each path.
- Who they can talk to who has done it.
- What they need to do in the next six months to keep each option open.
- How to decide, and by when.
Session times from Colorado Springs
Colorado runs one hour ahead of our Pacific-based mentors all year, since both states change clocks on the same dates.
- After school: 4:00, 5:00 or 6:00 pm in Colorado Springs is 3:00, 4:00 or 5:00 pm Pacific.
- After work or after a shift: 7:00 pm Mountain is 6:00 pm Pacific, and 8:00 pm Mountain is 7:00 pm Pacific.
- Early morning: a 7:00 am Mountain slot (6:00 am Pacific) can work for someone who reports early, by arrangement.
- Weekends: Saturday and Sunday sessions are available, which helps families with field training or rotating schedules.
The slot can move when a deployment, training cycle or sports season changes the week.
Life in the Springs: seasons, school and work
Most Colorado districts start in mid August and finish in late May, so the summer moving season and the first weeks of school often overlap for military families. Afternoon thunderstorms and hail are common in summer, and snow can arrive early in fall. Growth has pushed north toward Monument and east toward Falcon and Peyton, where distances to school and activities are long, and plenty of residents commute up I-25 to jobs in Denver.
Beyond defense and space work, the local economy includes tourism around Manitou Springs and the mountain, health care, a growing professional services sector, and many national nonprofits and faith-based organizations. Families here most often ask us three things: whether mentoring can continue after a relocation, how to help a teen adjust after a move, and how a young adult can decide between college, work and enlistment.
Situations that come up often in Colorado Springs
- A teen arrives in August after a PCS move and has two weeks to settle before classes start.
- A young athlete training at a high level is trying to keep school and sleep on track.
- A teen in Falcon or Peyton spends so much time driving to activities that schoolwork slips.
- A service member is leaving the military and is unsure how to translate experience into a civilian career.
- A young adult in a seasonal tourism job in Manitou Springs wants steadier work.
Where a mentor helps
A mentor offers practical guidance and steady accountability, not tutoring, therapy or admissions advice. If stress around a deployment or a move has become more than a rough patch, a licensed professional is the right step, and a mentor can work alongside one with permission. In a crisis, call or text 988. Military families can start with mentoring for military families, and service members heading into civilian work with veteran transition mentoring. Teens begin with mentoring for high school students. How video sessions work is on our online mentoring page.
Related
- Mentoring in Colorado
- Online mentoring in Denver and Boulder
- Online mentoring in Fort Collins
- Online mentoring in Albuquerque
- Mentoring for student athletes
Common questions
Can mentoring continue by video if our military family moves from Colorado Springs?
Yes. Sessions are online, so the same mentor continues at the same weekly time after the family relocates, adjusted to the new time zone. Many families find that this continuity matters most in the first months at a new duty station.
What time are sessions for Colorado Springs clients in Mountain Time?
Colorado is one hour ahead of our Pacific-based mentors, so a 4 pm Mountain session is 3 pm for the mentor. After-school, evening, early-morning and weekend slots are all available. The time can move when training or a deployment changes the family’s week.
Do you help teens adjusting to a new school after a PCS move?
Yes. A mentor gives a new student a weekly plan, small social goals such as trying one club or team, and one steady adult to talk with. A parent can join the intro call for any high school student and help set the goals.
Can a deployed parent receive updates?
With the family’s agreement, yes. Progress updates can go to both parents, and a deployed parent can read them whenever communication allows. The parent at home stays the main contact for scheduling.
Do mentors help teens thinking about military service?
Yes. Mentors help them research enlisting, officer paths, college and civilian careers, and make a plan with clear next steps. They do not recruit or give admissions advice.
Get started
Want to talk about mentoring for your family in Colorado Springs? Call (888) 305-5422, email contact@blackburnmentoring.com or answer a few quick questions. It takes about 2 minutes, and you can book a free 20 minute intro call at the end.
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Free, by video, 20 minutes, with a member of our team. Weekdays 9 to 5 Pacific.