Celebrating with Tina

Tina Martin, a former Joshua Station program alumni, frequents our staff offices each week on various mornings. In the MHM Building, we’ll often hear her hollering up the stairs to announce that she is in the building and that her $2 breakfast burritos are for sale. Regardless of customer interest upstairs in JAMLAC and MHM, she always makes it a point to stop at our office doors to say hello and wish our day well. If she’s forgotten your name, she defers to her term of endearment and your name becomes, “hon”. “Have a good day, hon” she’ll, gently say as she departs.

Today she came with a broad smile. Just 2 days ago the City of Denver issued her an ID and license to peddle burritos at the nearby park. For $82/ year she is issued a permit and can be reassured that the park rangers won’t issue her a $350 fine for selling her goods as she walks the park. Her pride was beaming and so was her hope for increasing her income. We were all encouraged by the empowerment she continued to experience in our great city, Denver.