When Avery Newland didn’t make the basketball team this past fall, she knew God had a different plan for her free time after school. Combined with a passion for crafts and the Divine Mercy, Avery started her own business at 15 years old. The business? Prayer in the form of gemstone rosaries. Prayer has always … Read more
About 6 months ago, Joan came to Little Flower Assistance Center when her shelves were running empty. “It was a great time in need,” she shared outside the food bank in Aurora. Now she returned with a car packed with children’s clothes and surplus food to donate. Little Flower provides clothing, nutritious food and resources … Read more
Looking back, Tinasia describes her brief experience with homelessness as a blessing in disguise. If the pregnant mom of three did not face some of the challenges she faced, she wouldn’t have opened herself to the life-transforming help at Samaritan House. “I feel like things were able to work in my favor,” she shared from … Read more
Sandra arranges a bed with fresh sheets to ensure the next woman to walk through the doors of Samaritan House 48th feels comfort from the smell of laundry detergent from the sheets when she lays her head down. As Sandra continues her daily duties as shelter associate at the women’s shelter, she thinks to herself: … Read more
In November of 2010, Tara and two of her children started a trek to regain independence, gathering what little they had for a stay at Marisol Homes (then known as the Father Ed Judy House), a temporary home for single women and children run by Catholic Charities of Denver. At the time, she had been … Read more
Ilene was shocked. She recently graduated high school and found out she was pregnant after taking a test at Marisol Health in Denver. After talking it over with her boyfriend, “We decided we were going to go to Planned Parenthood and get it over with.” Ilene did not feel prepared to care for a baby. … Read more
Kelly just keeps moving forward. She sees her time at Samaritan House 48th as one stop along her destination to stable living. “I’m here for now but this is not my destination,” the 50-year-old shares while heating up hot cocoa. Wearing a purple coat and fleece jacket, she was on her way to taking a … Read more
n Lena’s life, Catholic Charities was not simply the provider of food and clothing during challenging times. They restored her hope and faith in Jesus Christ. Lena, a proud Catholic wife and mother, described her first transformative encounter with Catholic Charities like it was yesterday. Another day of barely getting by while living in her … Read more
You can find Lauree on the corner of 22nd and Larimer streets on most mornings steaming up espresso and talking to neighbors in the community. This is the same block where she learned to advocate for herself as a single mother experiencing homelessness and rediscover her independence. On the morning of November 6, 2017, Lauree lost custody of … Read more
Arisa was 19 and petrified. Her pregnancy test results were positive. “I was really scared and kind of horrified in the beginning, because I knew the (baby’s) dad was not someone who would be there for me,” she remembers. Her grandparents, who raised her, initially expressed disappointment and concern, which caused a strain in their … Read more