Terry Johnson, 48

I grew up in California, but I came out to Colorado to get away from some bad people in my life. I moved here with my daughter and her mother.

I was hooked on meth. It was all I wanted, all day every day. I had 13 teeth pulled at once as a result. My life spiraled out of control.

It started in California. A guy I knew offered me some, I tried it, and I was just hooked. I used to race bikes, work as a house painter, and take care of my mom. I ruined all of that with meth.

I came out here and I wanted to do better, but I was always high. I didn’t know anyone or anything. I ended up homeless.

Living on the streets was a terrible struggle. I nearly died a couple times. I nearly lost my toes. A bus driver told me to get on board and ride around one day because I was turning blue.

I could barely get another human to talk to me. People looked at me with disgust. People won’t blink to help you. If you’re on fire they’ll just step over you. I wanted to say, “I used to be just like you!”

I was self-medicating. I didn’t realize how bad my PTSD and OCD were. I saw terrible things in California – a person clapping near me can set off my PTSD. On the 4th of July I sit indoors and try to drown out the fireworks.

But one day I went to my meth dealer, and I overheard him talking about how he wanted to rob me. It terrified me. That was it. That was the last time I used. It’s been a couple years now.

I grew up in the church, so it was natural for me to come to a place like Giving Heart or Movement 5280 – they're faith-based.

Giving Heart told me to start getting my paperwork together. Birth certificate, Social Security card, driver’s license. That’s hard when you don’t have a computer or a phone! But they helped me out.

It took a long, long time, but eventually I made it to the top of the housing list. I got to tour the apartment, but I didn’t have first and last month’s rent. Movement 5280 helped me out with that.

The first two days in my apartment, I didn’t sleep. My PTSD is so bad, I kept thinking someone might be in the closet. But it feels so good to have my own apartment.

Now I volunteer at 5280. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for these people. If you’re living on the street, get in here. We’ll get you shoes on your feet and clothes on your back and food in your tummy. Take a shower, shave, have some conversation out of the elements. Keep coming back. You need a dentist? You need an ID? We can do that.

To folks who have never been homeless: don’t be so judgmental. Have some modesty and empathy. That could be you on the street. Oh, it could never be you? Keep saying that. Most people on the street now never thought it could be them.