SPECIAL FEATURE RAELENE JOHNSON RODNEY WOOLFOLK "THE PAPER REALLY CHANGED MY LIFE. IT HAS MADE ME BELIEVE IN MYSELF AND LET ME FIND MY OWN VOICE." I found out about the VOICE, on January 14, 2008. I was homeless, sleeping under a bridge in Boulder. I couldn’t believe that on my fi rst day, I was given a badge and 10 papers that I could vend and receive money for. The VOICE didn’t care about why I couldn’t get a 9-5 job. That day, I became my own boss. I could work when I wanted to and not work if I didn’t want to. The paper gave me a chance to work when no one else would hire me. That is what I’m most grateful for. I was able to go from under a bridge to renting a room out of someone’s home. After two years, I was able to move into my own place, get a car, and I was able to save money. I opened a bank account, got a credit card, and over time, I went from no credit to an excellent credit score, which I’ve kept for two years. I taught myself to read and write at age 28. Because I write for the Denver VOICE, I am also a published author. People tell me they cry and get a lot out of my words when they read my writing. I want to thank all of you, who have given to the paper during our diffi cult time. You’ll read in this issue what your generosity means to me and the rest of our vendors, who depend on the income we make from [vending] the paper to help us buy things we need or help us live better lives. I know we’re a small paper, now but believe we will get our vendors back, or we will get new vendors to help us grow. All of us vendors care about the VOICE. Some of us don’t know how we will make it if we don’t have the paper that changed our lives. The paper really changed my life. It has made me believe in myself and let me fi nd my own voice. By supporting the Denver VOICE, you have helped me, and you are helping to change more lives of people like me. From the bottom of my heart, I want to thank you for your support. I also want to wish everyone has a very blessed holiday season! "I SAID TO MYSELF, 'THIS IS IT, MAN. IF I DON'T DO THIS [PROGRAM], I'M EVENTUALLY GOING TO DIE OUT HERE ON THE STREETS.'" September 12 2007 that's the fi rst day I started vending the paper. I was working as a carpenter, and I got hit by a car, and they just kept going. I was on my bicycle that morning. I thought I could make it to work, but as the day went, my knee just started giving out on me. I went to the doctor who told me I had torn my ACL, which meant I had to wear a brace for eight months. So, my then-wife Monica came in and she says I got a fl ier for this paper called the Denver VOICE. I was telling her, “I am not about to go out and beg anybody for anything,” and she said, “Just come to one of the meetings.” That was when we had our meetings in an alley downtown, and it was only a handful of us and they were telling us, “Well this is what the paper does. You just have to go out there and get donations.” I was homeless for about 25 years. Here, San Francisco, Minnesota... I was constantly trying to look for something better, and I just did not give up. And when I got back to Denver, I could not take the shelters, the smell, the way the staff treats you, you know? And I was sleeping outside, even when it was cold, I was outside. And with that came the drinking and the drugs... all these things were a factor. And I fi nally got a case manager who said, "You're a perfect candidate for this program at Fort Lyons.” That’s in Los Animas, Colorado. I went there, and they said, "If you do six months in this program, you will obtain a lifetime housing voucher.” I said, to myself, "This is it, man. If I don't do this [program], I'm eventually going to die out here on the streets." I completed that program in 13 months and I received my lifetime housing voucher. After completing the program and with his housing voucher in hand, Woolfolk returned to the VOICE. Now, 26 years later, he continues to enjoy interacting with the community and the customers who seek him out to purchase the paper. November 2024 DENVER VOICE 7
8 Publizr Home