Homelessness is no stranger to Denver. What remains foreign to our city, is providing proper end-of-life care to its growing population of terminally ill unhoused individuals during a profoundly difficult end-of-life experience.

On April 29th 9News presented its documentary “Refuge” in DU’s Anderson Academic Commons, giving viewers a glimpse into the reality of death.

“Refuge” is a sad yet inspiring story that delves into end-of-life care for those both terminally ill and unhoused in Denver. It also shows the people working to make their deaths easier.

A person featured in the film is James Patrick Hall, a Gregorian Frier and former engineer who founded Rocky Mountain Refuge, a haven for those in need of end-of-life care. The refuge is a hospice center providing home-style care for free. It’s impact and need is made obvious by its long waitlist. 

The documentary follows four unhoused and terminally ill individuals: Jennifer, Renne, James and Jose. All of whom were unable to find appropriate care anywhere else, so they turned to Rocky Mountain Refuge.

James and Jennifer succumb to their illnesses, and Jose passes away while waiting for a bed. Once they pass, someone from the growing waitlist will fill their bed, with this cycle repeating over and over again.

The luxury of a quiet and peaceful death certainly isn’t shared by all, especially not by those without the resources and facilities to properly pay for one. 

Dr. Kelly Ferraro, The Division Chief of Palliative Medicine at Denver Health and frequent collaborator with Rocky Mountain Refuge, discussed the economic and political side of Medicaid. 

“You need a stable address, you need a stable phone number… you need a job… the level of access and resources that it takes to be able to enroll in medicaid is getting harder,” Ferraro said during a panel discussion after the showing.

These complicated requirements leave many unhoused people with few options to help pay for peace in death.

For example, Jennifer passed away at the end of the documentary and does so peacefully. She’s only able to do this because she was fortunate enough to have a bed at the refuge center. Her loving son and pregnant wife visit her before she passes. This experience is something she may not have had if she was unhoused during the time of her death. 

In an early scene featuring a moving close-up shot of a hospital ceiling winding its way through fluorescently lit hallways and a voice over by Patrick Hall, you hear “there is no doubt in my mind that whatever is in us that makes us who we are, who are real selves are, leaves when the body ceases.”

In death, you deserve comfort, love and a warm bed. However, this is a reality that few terminally ill unhoused individuals have the privilege of experiencing.

Rocky Mountain Refuge acts as a free alternative for end of life care and serves as a beacon of hope to people whose death faces them in an untimely, degenerative and possibly costly way.