Memorial services were held in Boulder and Longmont on Tuesday to remember and grieve for individuals who died this year after experiencing homelessness at some point in their lives.

The Boulder ceremony, which took place at the Central Park Bandshell near the Pearl Street Mall, acknowledged 54 people who died in Boulder County in 2023. Framed names of the departed community members lined the bandshell stage next to roses, tinsel and candles.

“When you’ve experienced homelessness, it impacts your lifespan,” Scott Medina of Boulder Bridge House told the crowd. “No matter whether, ultimately, the day of your passing is when you were housed or you were still on the streets, you likely have lived decades less than you would have if you hadn’t been homeless.”

Memorials are held throughout the U.S. each year around Dec. 21 to observe National Homeless Persons’ Memorial Day. Organized in part by Bridge House, homeless memorials have been held in Boulder for over a decade; last year’s ceremony at the bandshell listed 55 deaths.

At Tuesday’s ceremony, the Boulder City Council declared Thursday National Homeless Persons’ Memorial Day in the city.

“In remembering those who have died during or after enduring a period of homelessness, the cause of ending homelessness is kept urgent, as is the city’s commitment to preventing such deaths in the future,” said Councilmember Lauren Folkerts.

Some speakers expressed their remembrance through music, others through prayer. Pedro Silva, a former pastor in Boulder, recited an original poem about death and moving forward.

“In this life, we must learn to hold grief in one hand and joy in the other,” Silva read.

Speakers touched on both the physical and emotional stress that affects people with histories of homelessness, as well as the camaraderie within the homeless community.

“If we honor their memories, they’re not really gone,” said Bruce Johnson with Boulder shelter Haven Ridge.

During the “open remembrance” portion, several guests shared stories of their encounters with friends whose names appeared on this year’s list. Jen Livovich, founder of homeless outreach nonprofit Streetscape, reminisced on her connections with roughly a dozen people.

“I hope we get serious about treatment in this town, so that the … losses we have next year aren’t doubled or even higher,” Livovich said.

In Longmont, local nonprofit Homeless Outreach Providing Encouragement hosted the memorial for the fifth year. At The Journey Church, seven frames sat on the stage bearing the names of HOPE clients, past and present, who died this year.

“Those that we love that pass on are still with us, and we get to keep them alive in the stories that we share about what they meant to us,” said Janeth Barocio, a HOPE case manager.

Barocio read the names aloud, then invited guests to place a rose at the base the frames. A few audience members also came forward to share their favorite memories of the people Longmont lost this year.

Andy Schwartz, a former HOPE employee, memorialized John “Max” Maxsween — particularly Maxsween’s reaction to finding a home in Longmont through coordinated entry.

“It was the first time I really saw that pure joy of somebody transitioning from living outside into being housed,” Schwartz said.

A few guests, including Schwartz, talked about Frieda Burney, who died after she was hit by a drunken driver in June.

“I don’t think there’s anybody who I spent more time sitting on the sidewalk with, holding hands and praying, than I did with Frieda,” Schwartz said.

Leah Hobart, HOPE street outreach coordinator, talked about the friendship she formed with client Antonio “Peru” Acevedo.

“Even though we couldn’t sit down and have a one-on-one conversation like I can with everybody else here because of the language barrier, I still felt like we saw each other,” Hobart said.

A piano solo by an audience member closed the ceremony, with hot cocoa and cookies available for all who attended. Stories and words of comfort continued to be shared even after the memorial’s conclusion.

“The homeless community … they are such bright people in such dark places,” Hobart said. “You break your ankle, and they’re more worried about you then they are about themselves. And I think that says a lot.”