It is just after 4 a.m. Tuesday on the 16th Street Mall, long past the time when most of the Democratic National Convention revelry has ended for the night.
Police officers continue to patrol the mall, but there are far fewer officers than there were in the daytime and evening hours.
From a bench outside ESPN Zone, Mark Perez watches as the night nears its end. It is barely 12 hours since Perez arrived in Denver for the convention, after an 18-hour bus ride from his home in Houston.
A pre-kindergarten teacher, he traveled to Denver to be a staff volunteer for the convention. He says he has housing arrangements for his time in Denver, but during the late-night hours, he was not able to reach the people who had set them up, leaving him without a place to stay.
Perez would rather be in a hotel room or with friends, but he is not frustrated. He is enjoying a night outside.
“It’s a beautiful night. It’s not cold,” he says.
Perez, who is 47 years old and grew up in New Orleans, wears a cowboy hat decorated with pins supporting Barack Obama and wind-generated power, an environmentally friendly energy source, as he waits for dawn.
There is a scattering of beggars and homeless people on the mall, and Perez talks to some of them. One, Perez recalls, was especially willing to chat, and the others enjoyed the company.
“He felt I was a blessing to him. I reached out and talked to them,” Perez says, adding, “They see a bright light of the candle. They’re ready to engage.”
