She came to the event hoping to find two things, housing and a job. She left with only a t-shirt and underwear.

Zita Maria Vivo, 70, moved to the United States from Puerto Rico when she was 18. After spending a year in New Jersey she moved to New York for a number of years before coming to Colorado in 1977.

Over the years Vivo has worked retail, done security part-time, worked concessions at sporting events and, until 2000, styled hair.

“I always like to work,” Vivo said. “Sometimes they don’t want me to work.”

In the last 20 years she has been homeless four times and said she has lost one town home and three cars.

It was her first time at Project Homeless Connect, but she was told not to come by the people at the center she goes to. She went anyways because she heard no one was going to be there.

Her first stop was the employment center. Her assigned volunteer, freshman Jennifer Duncan helped her fill out her employment history and expected pay while they stood in line.

Vivo said she is looking for something peaceful after working retail she spent between six and eight years settling her energy back down.

When it was finally her turn Vivo sat down to talk to one of the employment services representatives. She refused to give them her Social Security number because she is scared her identity will be stolen. The lady helping her assured her their system is secured, but Vivo told her nothing is secure.

“I have to assert myself,” Vivo said. “I’ve had too many losses.”

She explained that she is a target for her energy to be stolen and check fraud. Since the employment services could not help her without a Social Security number, Vivo and Duncan moved on to the housing line.

“What I need is assigned permanent housing,” Vivo said. “That’s the first thing I need.”

Vivo spends most of her nights at the Deloris women’s shelter in Denver, where chores are assigned to the women daily. On the nights the shelter is full she goes to the bookstore to read and then gets something to eat before calling it a night on a bench downtown.

“I sleep sitting up,” Vivo said.

On most days Vivo is up by 6 a.m. to help with chores at the shelter before heading out at 8 a.m. to get breakfast or attend 8:30 a.m. Mass at the Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception. On the days she doesn’t go to Mass she catches the bus to the downtown McDonalds for breakfast.

“It seems every place I go they give me a hard time,” Vivo said.

Vivo keeps a daily budget and tries not to exceed $10 each day. On most days she only spends $1.72 on a McDonalds Egg McMuffin.

“I would love to cook my own eggs,” Vivo said.

The rest of her day is usually spent at Senior Support Services on East 18th Avenue, where she either reads or works on the narratives she is writing.

She carries two cloth bags, each wrapped inside a dozen Barnes & Noble plastic bags. Inside the bags she carries her papers, some clean clothes and a little bit of food. But for the past two years most of her possessions have been in a locker she pays for monthly.

Her only source of income is from Social Security, which she said would be enough except for price abuse in the market.

“Some of it is my fault because I didn’t get educated.”

They waited for an hour in the housing line before Duncan was able to convince Vivo to visit Senior Services. Vivo was again reluctant to give out any information for the lady to help her, so she returned to the housing line with only a business card and a pamphlet.

“I’ve been running around for almost eight years and I just haven’t been successful.”

There were still 30 people in the housing line before her when it was time for her bus to depart, so Vivo left the event with only a few pamphlets, a t-shirt and a couple pairs of new underwear.

“Now,” she said, “I understand why they didn’t want me to come.”