A Fresh Start

Servant Leadership. What a great idea.

Since February, Aurora Mayor Mike Coffman has spent his Friday nights and Saturday mornings at the Navigation Center’s Tier One overnight shelter for people experiencing homelessness. Coffman is trying to understand the experience firsthand by sleeping on a cot at a city-funded, nonprofit-run hotel shelter.

Coffman was instrumental in creating the 600-bed shelter, so when it came under fire for plumbing issues, mold concerns, and inconsistent rules, he was adamant about investigating the project he helped launch.

The shelter gives him a blanket and a cot for the night, and he spends his mornings handing out milk to patrons for breakfast.

The center has three levels of support, with more services and responsibilities at each stage. Tier One provides basic shelter, Tier Two requires working with case managers and peer coaches, and Tier Three offers long-term independent living with a full-time job requirement.

‘One thing I’ve learned is how complex everything is and how individualized it is,’ Coffman said. ‘You can’t categorize people into any particular group. You have to see them as individuals. Quite frankly, it’s made me more compassionate.’

Coffman has seen how the system helps people, especially those needing job training and housing assistance. He believes the center can adapt to the needs of the people it’s serving, but it is currently operating at limited capacity, and people are falling through the cracks.

Coffman said he plans to keep sleeping at the shelter until he feels the system has adjusted properly, is meeting everyone’s needs, and can serve as a model for Colorado — and potentially the entire country.

We want to extend our heartfelt thanks to everyone who helped make our Bowl-a-Thon a success through donations of raffle prizes, silent auction items, gift cards, monetary contributions, and so much more.

Every donation—big or small—helped create an exciting event while raising funds to support A Fresh Start and the Crisis Nursery. Your generosity and kindness are what make our community so special.

We are incredibly grateful for each business, organization, and individual who chose to support our mission. Thank you for believing in the work we do and for helping make a difference in the lives of local individuals and families.

Here are the trivia questions from the Bowl-a-thon. Posting for those who find trivia fun. Answers in the comments. The winner was Cheri Forbord! Congrats, Cheri.