You Belong: Dry Bones Denver Creates Home for Unhoused Youth

For many of us, Christmas means home: familiar faces, shared meals, and the comfort of being known. For unhoused teens and young adults, the season can deepen feelings of separation and loss. At Dry Bones Denver, this time of year is approached with intention, creating spaces where street connected young people can feel seen, valued, and truly belong.

November and December are often the hardest months for youth living on the streets. While the world celebrates togetherness, many experience increased loneliness. Dry Bones responds the way family does: by offering presence, consistency, and welcome without conditions.

Throughout December, young people gather around shared meals and simple celebrations. These moments are about more than food. They restore dignity and communicate something powerful without many words: you matter, and you have a place here.

Dry Bones gatherings often become reunions, with young people returning years later to reconnect and share their journeys. This reflects the long term relationships at the heart of the ministry.

At this year’s Christmas celebration, each young person received a custom sweatshirt bearing two words:

You Belong.

This is not a slogan. It is one of Dry Bones’ core pillars and a declaration of identity. Worn long after the event ends, it becomes a quiet reminder on difficult days that someone sees them.

Through the generosity of many supporters and donors, including Open Soul Foundation, Dry Bones Denver continues to show up consistently for street connected youth. Together, this community helps create spaces of dignity, connection, and hope, especially during the most tender seasons of the year.

As Dry Bones approaches its 25th year, the focus remains on building deep community through consistent companionship and long term relationships. In 2025, the ministry expanded this vision through the Dry Bones Living Academy, a 12 month journey supporting young people as they explore identity, purpose, and growth alongside coaches and therapists.

At its core, Dry Bones Denver offers something simple and profound: a place where young people are reminded again and again,

You belong.

Open Soul Foundation was here.

“If you extend your soul to the hungry and satisfy the afflicted soul, then your light shall dawn in the darkness, and your darkness shall be as the noonday.” Isaiah 58:10