You can see the Denver Voice on nearly every street corner in downtown Denver.
It's a small newspaper in the hands of people that many normally overlook, but this small thing is making big change. The paper's mission is "to facilitate a dialogue addressing the roots of homelessness by telling stories of people whose lives are impacted by poverty and homelessness and to offer economic, educational and empowerment opportunities for the impoverished community."
However, it is much more than that.
The Denver Voice is Joe. It's Michael, and many more like them.
Joe is a Denver Voice vendor that stands at 17th and California. Joe is a sweet older man with small glasses that has been homeless for 15 years. He tells me business is a slow and that I am the first person to talk to him all day. We've talked before, and after a bit I offered him some candy - his face lights up and he tells me he has a sweet tooth and loves anything chocolate, as he takes a few Snickers, Reese's and Almond Joy.
Just a block away, Michael is selling the Denver Voice at 16th and California, he tells me I am the first person to buy a paper from him that day. Michael is dressed in a button-up shirt and a sweater with a jacket, a good-looking man. We chat for a bit and he tells me that he went to Princeton, but did Cocaine for 20 years and it finally caught up with him and had taken his life from him. He sought help and for the last five years he's been working to get his life back.
Both of these men are faces of homelessness, but also the faces of hope.
Each Denver Voice is a suggested donation of $2 and gives the vendor an opportunity to have an income. The vendors are held to a code of responsibility and purchase the Voice for 50-cents, then they can make $1.50 on each paper when they sell them.
In 2011, there were 479 vendors and 305 new vendors, and the Voice gave each of those people a chance to support themselves.
They are working downtown just like everyone else and each paper they sell gives them a chance at a better life. Next time you walk by a Denver Voice vendor, say hello, think about buying a paper and maybe ask how their day is going.
You never know who you'll meet and what you caring will mean to them.
October 14, 2015
March 21, 2013
Looking for a bit of magic for Tinker Bell
The following article is
a guest post on the Doggie Avenger Blog, written by a fellow Doggie Avenger,
Erin Rist.
If you have ever had the pleasure of owning a Great Dane then you know how they bury themselves deep into your heart. They are beautiful, majestic dogs who are incredibly sensitive, embody the spirit of "man's best friend" and have an extraordinary way of communicating with you that no other breed can match.
Great Danes are well known as "Gentle Giants" and depending on their build and gender they can weigh anywhere from 90-200lbs. They often don't realize their own size. They bump into things and think they can fit on your lap. One my Danes loves to sit on my lap!
They are surprisingly sweet with other dogs and are careful not to be reckless around small dogs and children. Great Danes are the true definition of couch potatoes and spend most of their time being lazy. And they are the best cuddle buddies, mostly because their size makes them 100% huggable.
As someone who is owned by two Great Danes herself I have a soft spot for them and can't bear to see a Dane suffering.
Currently at the MaxFund sits lovable 6-year-old Tinker Bell the Great Dane. Tinker Bell was surrendered by her owner who slapped her across the face in front of MaxFund staff just before she released Tinker Bell into the next chapter of her life. It doesn't take an expert to see that this was not the first time Tinker Bell was abused. I have met Tinker Bell myself and you can see the abuse on her through her eyes and it has even burned into her heart. She seems sad and looks defeated. It is truly heart breaking to look at her.
But, through all of that, within
minutes of meeting Tinker Bell she came over to me and gave me a soft kiss on
my cheek. She is truly the example of looking forward despite the cards she has
been dealt so far.
Tinker Bell has been at the MaxFund for almost two entire months. While the staff there cares and provides for her to the best of their abilities it is still especially hard on a Great Dane to live their life in a cold, kennel without the comforts of a home and without knowing what their future holds. Great Danes are dogs meant to be right next to their people whether that is underfoot, on the couch or snuggled up in bed. The lonely, cold and isolated experience of any shelter is never good for any dog but for a Dane it can be devastating.
I implore anyone who has just read these words to get up and do something! Let's get her out of the MaxFund and into her forever home; let's help Tinker Bell get to her perfect tomorrow.
How can you do this?
Tinker Bell deserves all of the help we can lend her. If you have the heart take the time to do anything you can to help her out. Everything counts, big and small.
If you have ever had the pleasure of owning a Great Dane then you know how they bury themselves deep into your heart. They are beautiful, majestic dogs who are incredibly sensitive, embody the spirit of "man's best friend" and have an extraordinary way of communicating with you that no other breed can match.
Great Danes are well known as "Gentle Giants" and depending on their build and gender they can weigh anywhere from 90-200lbs. They often don't realize their own size. They bump into things and think they can fit on your lap. One my Danes loves to sit on my lap!
They are surprisingly sweet with other dogs and are careful not to be reckless around small dogs and children. Great Danes are the true definition of couch potatoes and spend most of their time being lazy. And they are the best cuddle buddies, mostly because their size makes them 100% huggable.
As someone who is owned by two Great Danes herself I have a soft spot for them and can't bear to see a Dane suffering.
Currently at the MaxFund sits lovable 6-year-old Tinker Bell the Great Dane. Tinker Bell was surrendered by her owner who slapped her across the face in front of MaxFund staff just before she released Tinker Bell into the next chapter of her life. It doesn't take an expert to see that this was not the first time Tinker Bell was abused. I have met Tinker Bell myself and you can see the abuse on her through her eyes and it has even burned into her heart. She seems sad and looks defeated. It is truly heart breaking to look at her.
Tinker Bell has been at the MaxFund for almost two entire months. While the staff there cares and provides for her to the best of their abilities it is still especially hard on a Great Dane to live their life in a cold, kennel without the comforts of a home and without knowing what their future holds. Great Danes are dogs meant to be right next to their people whether that is underfoot, on the couch or snuggled up in bed. The lonely, cold and isolated experience of any shelter is never good for any dog but for a Dane it can be devastating.
I implore anyone who has just read these words to get up and do something! Let's get her out of the MaxFund and into her forever home; let's help Tinker Bell get to her perfect tomorrow.
How can you do this?
·
Consider
adopting Tinker Bell from the MaxFund.
·
Spread
the word. Re-post this information to your own personal blog, your Facebook
wall, post a link to it from your Twitter handle, email your friends, family
and anyone you know who may be able to provide any opportunities to Tinker
Bell.
·
Send
your good vibes, warm thoughts and prayers Tinker Bell's way.
Tinker Bell deserves all of the help we can lend her. If you have the heart take the time to do anything you can to help her out. Everything counts, big and small.
March 16, 2013
Patches O'Houlihan's Luck o' the Irish
In my opinion, this story already has a happy ending.
Patches O'Houlihan - Patches for short- is sleeping on a fleece blanket next to me with his legs resting on the pug laying next to him.
This kind of calm and peace always makes me happy, but perhaps it seems even more happy when you contrast it to the place he was last night - or eight hours ago, for that matter.
Patches was a last chance dog just hours ago.
He and I left the Denver Municipal Animal Shelter (DMAS) for his second chance at life on a day when all of my friends were out celebrating St. Patty's Day downtown - hence his Irish-ish name.
This adorable, young terrier pug mix had been at the city shelter for one month, a pretty long time for a shelter with an average stay of closer to a week.
Patches has a skin irritation, causing his belly to be pink and not have much hair on it, a rash that is likely from something minor like a food allergy. Yet, because of his skin, he was not allowed to be adopted to the public through the shelter - he was placed on the "rescue-only" list, meaning that only other animal rescue organizations can take him out of the DMAS.
The rescue-only list is typically for dogs that are fearful, timid, aggressive, or on medication. While it can be hard to tell if they are just scared of the shelter environment, any dog exhibiting these behaviors or who is suffering from an illness or on a medication will not be available to the public at many city shelters, at any time.
While this sounds strange to many people I've told about it, let me derail slightly and applaud how far the shelter system has come in collaborating with rescues, in an effort to save more dogs. Efforts like that make all the difference in the world, and have helped DMAS decrease the save rate of their dogs from about half several years ago to almost 85% currently.
Shelters are starting to take very proactive approaches to saving lives, and it's starting to work.
For Patches, he was on his last call - labeled "urgent" - because he had been at the shelter so long. We took him out of his cage and I sat on the floor outside his kennel. After circling me a couple times, he climbed into my lap and gave me a kiss. I was sold ... and I brought him home as our next foster dog.
Now, just eight hours into this foster experience, I'd like to think that Patches isn't even thinking about his month in the shelter, or the sad situation that got him there - one that I don't even know - but rather, I hope that Patches is already understanding the amount of love he will receive in his life with this second chance.
Patches is a sweet dog that I've quickly learned that loves to play fetch, give kisses and can jump on a bar stool despite his small stature. When I think about this little life being cut short in a few short days, it makes me a little sad, of course, but it should also empower and renew us all in the importance of stepping up every day and trying to make a difference to someone or something somewhere.
For as the rescue community notes, and I think Patches would agree: Saving the life of one animal may not change the world, but the world will surely change for that one animal.
And furthermore, I think it's an oversight to not say that we ourselves will also be changed. As Patches sleeps next to me, I feel a wave of hope come over me with his steady breathing and cute little ears flopping over his face.
He doesn't have a permanent home yet, but he will.
Animals still die every day in shelters, but with our help it will stop.
People still buy from breeders and pet stores (puppy mill storefronts), but education can change that.
Sitting next to him I feel so hopeful for the future of animal rescue.
Things are changing; forward movements are happening. People are stepping up and fewer animals are dying. One dog at a time we'll change the trends, we'll change the death count, and we'll change the world.
But for today, it was Patches world that changed.
Patches O'Houlihan - Patches for short- is sleeping on a fleece blanket next to me with his legs resting on the pug laying next to him.
This kind of calm and peace always makes me happy, but perhaps it seems even more happy when you contrast it to the place he was last night - or eight hours ago, for that matter.
Patches was a last chance dog just hours ago.
He and I left the Denver Municipal Animal Shelter (DMAS) for his second chance at life on a day when all of my friends were out celebrating St. Patty's Day downtown - hence his Irish-ish name.
This adorable, young terrier pug mix had been at the city shelter for one month, a pretty long time for a shelter with an average stay of closer to a week.
Patches has a skin irritation, causing his belly to be pink and not have much hair on it, a rash that is likely from something minor like a food allergy. Yet, because of his skin, he was not allowed to be adopted to the public through the shelter - he was placed on the "rescue-only" list, meaning that only other animal rescue organizations can take him out of the DMAS.
The rescue-only list is typically for dogs that are fearful, timid, aggressive, or on medication. While it can be hard to tell if they are just scared of the shelter environment, any dog exhibiting these behaviors or who is suffering from an illness or on a medication will not be available to the public at many city shelters, at any time.
While this sounds strange to many people I've told about it, let me derail slightly and applaud how far the shelter system has come in collaborating with rescues, in an effort to save more dogs. Efforts like that make all the difference in the world, and have helped DMAS decrease the save rate of their dogs from about half several years ago to almost 85% currently.
Shelters are starting to take very proactive approaches to saving lives, and it's starting to work.
For Patches, he was on his last call - labeled "urgent" - because he had been at the shelter so long. We took him out of his cage and I sat on the floor outside his kennel. After circling me a couple times, he climbed into my lap and gave me a kiss. I was sold ... and I brought him home as our next foster dog.
Now, just eight hours into this foster experience, I'd like to think that Patches isn't even thinking about his month in the shelter, or the sad situation that got him there - one that I don't even know - but rather, I hope that Patches is already understanding the amount of love he will receive in his life with this second chance.
Patches is a sweet dog that I've quickly learned that loves to play fetch, give kisses and can jump on a bar stool despite his small stature. When I think about this little life being cut short in a few short days, it makes me a little sad, of course, but it should also empower and renew us all in the importance of stepping up every day and trying to make a difference to someone or something somewhere.
For as the rescue community notes, and I think Patches would agree: Saving the life of one animal may not change the world, but the world will surely change for that one animal.
And furthermore, I think it's an oversight to not say that we ourselves will also be changed. As Patches sleeps next to me, I feel a wave of hope come over me with his steady breathing and cute little ears flopping over his face.
He doesn't have a permanent home yet, but he will.
Animals still die every day in shelters, but with our help it will stop.
People still buy from breeders and pet stores (puppy mill storefronts), but education can change that.
Sitting next to him I feel so hopeful for the future of animal rescue.
Things are changing; forward movements are happening. People are stepping up and fewer animals are dying. One dog at a time we'll change the trends, we'll change the death count, and we'll change the world.
But for today, it was Patches world that changed.
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