About us

We keep the listings behind referrals current, so the people doing the work can trust them.

Why we started CommonLight

CommonLight began with a problem we understood from different sides. During his years leading a NAMI affiliate, Jason saw what happened when someone was ready to seek help but the referral information was out of date or incomplete. Zo lived it as a parent. When his children needed care, his family was handed a printed list of resources and none of them worked, and it took nearly a month to find the right doctor. He had spent two decades building systems that only work when the data underneath them is right at the moment someone acts on it, and he recognized the failure immediately: information changes constantly and nobody is checking it. Fixing that means gathering information from its sources, verifying it continuously, measuring how confident we can be in each record, and delivering it into the systems people already rely on.

We started CommonLight because the care someone receives should not depend on whether a phone number was updated or a program's requirements were clear. The people doing this work need information they can examine and trust, with an honest account of what has and has not been confirmed.

Why this matters

The people who run these organizations know their communities. Their staff know which clinic answers the phone and which pantry closed last winter. What they don't have time for is re-checking every listing every month. When a listing is wrong, a coordinator wastes a call and the person they're helping hits another dead end. We think that part of the problem is fixable.

What CommonLight does

CommonLight keeps mental-health and social-service listings checked and current. We provide that information to organizations through an API or a file, depending on their setup. Each listing shows when and how it was checked, along with what still needs confirmation.

The people behind it

Jason Hopcus

Cofounder and CEO

Jason Hopcus is cofounder and CEO of CommonLight Technologies. He believes that when someone finds the courage to ask for help, the answer should lead to connection.

During a decade as President and CEO of NAMI Arapahoe/Douglas Counties, an affiliate of the National Alliance on Mental Illness, Jason saw how easily that moment could be lost when information was outdated, eligibility was unclear, or a referral led nowhere. He has also created and led large-scale social impact campaigns to support our most vulnerable populations and reached broader audiences as a best-selling author and podcast host.

The idea for CommonLight grew from Jason's belief that we can close the gap between someone struggling and the support available to them. As technology has advanced, that idea has come fully into focus. Now, with CommonLight, organizations can keep resource information reliable and current, then put it to use in the support tools and conversations where people are already seeking help.

For Jason, the purpose is human: a useful answer, a real connection, and a next right step.

Alonso "Zo" Vargas

Cofounder

Alonso "Zo" Vargas is cofounder of CommonLight Technologies and leads product, technology, and finance. He believes the information behind a referral should be current, checked, and honest about what it knows.

Zo has spent more than twenty years building technology that has to work in real time, from systems infrastructure to product leadership for location intelligence and hospitality platforms. He learned what bad data costs in care as a parent. When his children needed help, his family was handed a printout of resources and none of them worked. It took nearly a month to find the right doctor.

At CommonLight, Zo designed and built the platform and its verification methodology. The system continuously checks resource information against its sources, scores how confident it is in each record, keeps a history of what was confirmed and when, and delivers it into the tools organizations already use.

For Zo, the purpose is practical: accurate information, a clear record of what has been confirmed, and a referral that holds up.

Proof and boundaries

CommonLight completed a community resource data pilot with Douglas County, Colorado, in 2026.

CommonLight’s Atlas provides verified resource data. NinePatch provides the care coordination platform that uses that data. NinePatch announced its partnership with CommonLight in May 2026.

CommonLight handles resource information. Clients handle referrals and information about the people they serve.

A recently checked number does not mean a program has an opening today. We show what is known and what still needs confirmation.

Read the Douglas County announcement →
Talk with usPrivacy & security

CommonLight Technologies is based in Denver, Colorado.