Boulder, Colo. — Ask Dr. Beth Mazzola why she likes working with people experiencing homeless and she'll tell you her passion for helping people started when she was just a teenager.
"I really loved watching Mother Theresa," said Dr. Beth. "I went to Calcutta and worked with Mother Theresa and the dying there."
While the Boulder doctor might not be a nun like her mentor, there is no doubt she's a saint.
"I really feel that Jesus really loved people who are the lesser-than in this world and that’s just my heart," said Dr. Beth.
Dr. Beth has devoted her life's work to helping the dying and the homeless. The calling brought her to Boulder, where each week she makes the rounds at the local homeless shelters and churches to provide free medical care. It's where she first met Greg Hamilton.
"I don’t know where I’d be or what would be the circumstances if I hadn’t have met Beth. She was the best thing to ever happen to me," Hamilton said.
Hamilton has now been seeing Dr. Beth for three years and says she has helped turn his life around.
"When I met with her I was having a lot of trouble with arthritis and I had injury-caused cataracts and I could hardly see. I was pretty close to being completely blind," Hamilton said.
Dr. Beth helped Hamilton get much-needed eye surgery. His arthritis pain that was once unbearable is now under control. Both doctor and patient know the healing goes so much deeper than that.
"I have an understanding of what it felt like to be invisible. I grew up with an alcoholic father and because of his alcoholism he couldn’t be there emotionally and it was very hard for me to feel seen," Dr. Beth said. "I think I just connect with that, with people who are homeless. They often say, 'I just wanna be treated with respect and dignity.'"
Today, Hamilton has a one bedroom apartment and he's even adopted his own dog, Sapphire. He'll tell you his life has completely turned around — thanks in part to a holy doctor who sees herself in the eyes of those she helps.
"It feels like hope. It feels joyful seeing people who actually get to move out of their place where they’re stuck and they’re hurting to a place where they’re able to thrive," said Dr. Beth.
Molly Hendrickson anchors Denver7 in the mornings from 4:30-7 a.m. She also features a different 7Everyday Hero each week on Denver7. Follow Molly on Facebook here and Twitter here. To nominate a hero in your life, click here.
