COLORADO SPRINGS — With over 13 hours of darkness, tonight will be the longest night of the year. The winter solstice is also a time to acknowledge the hardship people experiencing homelessness face, especially through the colder, winter season.
Tonight, at the Evergreen Cemetery in Colorado Springs, a candlelight vigil will honor people who have lost their lives, homeless in Colorado Springs.
The annual “Longest Night Remembrance” is held to recognize the loneliness, suffering, and cold the homeless community encounters through the winter season. The annual event also brings awareness to social issues people experiencing homelessness face in Colorado Springs.
The names of 93 people who lost their lives on the streets this year in Colorado Springs will be read and honored with the words “We Remember.” The candlelight service will also include live music and guest speakers.
I spoke with Homeward Pikes Peak, a local nonprofit that offers resources to people experiencing homelessness about the significance behind this event.
“I think the vigil is definitely a very powerful event going to honor those that have lost their lives to experiencing homelessness is important and it’s just really amazing to see communities coming together and honoring lives that are lost,” said Jansen Howard, Program Manager at Homeward Pikes Peak.
The event begins at 5:30 p.m. at the Paupers Burial site for cremains at the Evergreen Cemetery.
The vigil is open to the public.
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