DENVER — It wouldn't be considered much of a home for many, but for Michelle Colvard and her three children, the Quality Inn on Zuni Street and 27th Avenue was a safe haven from their former lives.
The City of Denver leased the motel during the pandemic to provide shelter for more than 150 people experiencing on homelessness. On Friday, the shelter will close its doors permanently.
"This whole situation is quite devastating," Colvard said.
On Wednesday, Colvard began the process of packing, all the while trying to answer her children's questions as best she could.
"They keep asking me, where are we going? Where are we going to be? Where are we going to stay?" the mother said.
She's heard these questions before and has been searching for answers ever since she left her husband amid years of domestic violence.
"It wasn't safe for them, and it wasn't safe for me," Colvard said. "As opposed to telling my husband that I was gonna leave him, I just left. I didn't tell him anything. I just couldn't stay anymore... he's physically, emotionally, just abusive. And I just didn't want to do it anymore, so I left it."
Colvard drove across two states to Denver last year in a car that has since broken down.
The Quality Inn quickly became their home — the most stable thing the family has had in years — but the daily routine has been difficult.
"My youngest son, we take three buses to get him to school. It's the 28 to the 31 and then the 16," Colvard said. "And for my daughter, she rides with me to drop him off, and then her and I walk to her school from there."
Balancing a hectic schedule and caring for a child with sickle cell disease, all while attending a full time CNA program, is already a challenge. Now, trying to find permanent housing is going to make that challenge even more difficult.
Her family will be transitioned into a temporary housing facility Thursday amid the Quality Inn's closure.
Denver7 Gives is collecting money to help the mother and her family in this challenging time. To donate, visit the Denver7 Gives tab on denver7.com, then select "Stable Housing for Mother of Three" from the dropdown menu.
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