I got my start in news writing on the obituary desk. That’s where most newspaper reporters cut their teeth. Of course, you never would want to screw up an obituary. It’s a person’s final sign-off.
But not everybody gets an obituary. People experiencing homelessness or those formerly homeless often have no one listed as survivors. I don’t. I’ve written this before, but if I died tomorrow nobody even would know. I have tried to reach out to my family, but they are not interested in speaking with me. My mental illness and ensuing homelessness were an embarrassment to the family. Maybe it should have been.
I think about dying a lot now that I’m getting older. I certainly plan to live to 100. I don’t like the idea of death. I mean, who does, right? Dying was my biggest fear during homelessness. So, my heart breaks for every homeless or formerly homeless person who died in Denver in 2024 – all 294 of them. Their worst nightmare came true. For 68%, death came by fentanyl or some other overdose and the person likely died alone, according to a Coalition brief on homelessness deaths.