Mental Health Colorado welcomes former Prowers County Commissioner Wendy Buxton-Andrade as Vice President of Government Affairs

DENVER – Today, Mental Health Colorado (MHC), the state’s leading advocacy organization for people experiencing mental health and substance use conditions, announced that Wendy Buxton-Andrade, a former Prowers County Commissioner, will join the organization as its Vice President of Government Affairs.

“Wendy has long been a prominent champion for the health of Coloradans, and we are very fortunate to add her to our leadership team,” said Vincent Atchity, President and CEO of Mental Health Colorado. “Wendy brings valuable perspective and over a decade of experience as a county commissioner advocating for better mental health and substance use services in Colorado communities. We look forward to working alongside Wendy to promote healthier minds across the lifespan for all Coloradans.”

Born and raised in rural Southern Colorado, Wendy Buxton-Andrade served as a Prowers County Commissioner for 12 years, receiving the Freshman Commissioner of the Year award in 2014. She has also held significant roles as Chair and Vice Chair of Health and Human Services for Colorado Counties Incorporated for 10 years,and has been a member of the Works Allocation Committee, Child Welfare Allocation Committee, and the Attorney General’s Substance Abuse Task Force for the past 11 years.

In 2019 and 2020, Wendy took on a leadership role of convening CCI members to work collaboratively with the Colorado Office of the Attorney General to guide the use and distribution of the Colorado opioid settlement funds, ensuring that the majority of the settlement dollars would be allocated to communities for their determination on how best to utilize the funds to respond to the opioid crisis in their communities. Wendy received the Jody Gingery Exceptional Service Award from the Colorado Consortium of Prescription Drug Abuse Prevention for her work with the Opioid Settlement and advocacy for substance misuse.

Wendy comes to Mental Health Colorado with years of experience partnering with local and state leaders to improve mental health and substance use policies for the people of Colorado. She also comes with her valuable and credible rural perspective, which will be beneficial in advancing the nonpartisan health advocacy organization’s commitment to being a champion for the greater health of all Coloradans.

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