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Homeless Memorial
BY PHIL WILLKIE
Eighty-eight people were remembered on Dec. 21 at the 22nd annual
homeless memorial at Simpson United Methodist Church, West 28th
Street and First Avenue South. So many homeless people are anonymous
and would just quietly disappear from our society, were it not for
this memorial service.
They are found in abandoned cars, under railroad
bridges and down by the river. I often hear people “say”
they want to live that way. I doubt they have any concept of what
it is to be homeless.
The sanctuary at Simpson United Methodist was
full of activists, advocates, friends, social workers and volunteers
who confront this loss. As the sanctuary filled with hundreds—witnesses
came forth to tell stories of acquaintances who had died. Speaking
of a 21-year-old young man: “He was always optimistic, never
gave up. Homelessness was not a choice. He had to leave. He gathered
as many quarters as he could. The only thing to do was to blast
out from danger and find safety and light. This happens to a lot
of kids.”
Mike Wilk, 64, of St. Paul, was described as
fiercely independent. Another man named Ralph struggled with severe
mental illness and addiction to alcohol. Jim French, 58, of Duluth
never recovered mentally from the Vietnam War. He was a combat medic,
eleven months on the battlefield. He talked constantly about death
and destruction.
One man jumped from the Franklin Avenue bridge
over the Mississippi. He was described as someone who feared for
his safety and had little hope.
There were many tributes to Sister Rita Steinhagen, 77, who died
recently. Sister Rita founded The Bridge for homeless youth in Minneapolis.
One speaker said of her: “She served the poor because it was
natural to her. Once she loved you she did not stop.”
Homeless remembered at Memorial Service
Shelli Kay Arnold, 37—Hennepin County
Talius Teres Baggett, 31—Hennepin County
James Randall Baldwin, 51—Hennepin County
Arlene Linda Beaulieu, 54—Minneapolis
David Beaulieu, 30—Minneapolis
Gary Beaupre, 33—Grand Rapids
Frank Bluebird, 50—Minneapolis
Daniel J. Brown, 61—St. Paul
Lorenzo Catto, 20s—Minneapolis
Rosemary Charles, 48—St. Paul
Michael James Chasley, 44—Minneapolis
Michael Connelly, 54
Carol Cross, 60—Crookston
Denise Patricia Davis, 42—Hennepin County
Mark Steven Davis, 54—Minneapolis
Anthony Del Medico, 45—St. Paul
David Crawford DeMuth, 39—St. Paul
Billy Leon Dowell, 36—Minneapolis
Michael Lee Edenburn, 50—Minneapolis
Mary Ellison, 45—Duluth
Margaret Keenan Evans, 78—St. Paul
Tyrone Fields, 44—Minneapolis
Maria Isabel Garcia, 48—Hennepin County
Bill Gibbs, Minneapolis
David Ray Gilliver, 30—Hennepin County
Karen Gilmore, 51—St. Paul
Macgil Green, 37—Duluth
Todd Griffis, 48—St. Paul
Robert “Bobby” Gurno, 27—Minneapolis
Jan Hagen, 54—Minneapolis
Thomas Dean Haroldson, 48—Hennepin County
Herman “Shorty” Hughes, 64—St. Paul
Richard Johnson, 46—St. Cloud
Steve “Stork” Johnson, 51—Minneapolis
John Jones, 45—Minneapolis
Jimmy A. Kennedy, 52—Minneapolis
Leon Kleina, 54—Crookston
John Jay LaFave—Duluth
Thomas Edward Little Thunder, 39—Minneapolis
Oscar Lopez-Castillo, 40—Hennepin County
Bhomattie Mahadeo, 39—St. Paul
Marcel Edward Martinez, 30—Minneapolis
Chuck McGeehan, 56—St. Paul
Jacqueline McMahon, 43—
St. Paul
Jeffrey Miessner, 37—Minneapolis
Jerry Mitchum, 48—Duluth
Styles Peterson Moore, 30—Minneapolis
David Morgan—Duluth
Paul Paine, 54—Duluth
Charles Peffer, 53—Minneapolis
Edward Pendergast, 40—St. Paul
Ralph Edward Perkins, 56—Minneapolis
Ricky Lenez Powells, 40—Hennepin County
Theo Presley-Miller, 52—St. Paul
Harold Rainey, 46—Minneapolis
Wayne Reyes, 42—Hennepin County
Robert Herman Richardson, 55—St. Paul
Lars Harold Risvold, 73—St. Paul
Vincent “Buddy” Roberts, 21—Minneapolis
Andrew Roy, 30—Hennepin County
Larry Joseph Ryan, 42—St. Paul
Chris Sandberg, 32—Minneapolis
Leroy Schmeltzer, 64—Minneapolis
Edward Alphonso Shannon, 37—Hennepin County
Jeffrey Shugg, 37—Duluth
Jane Solum, 64—St. Paul
Michael Sorowski, 66—St. Cloud
Devita Stewart, 39—Duluth
Vanessa Stillday, 25—Ponemah
Herman Strong Jr., 34—Bemidji
James Michael Svejkovsky, 55—Minneapolis
Ruth Swartz, 76—St. Paul
Kevin Tippett, 41—Minneapolis
James Matthew Tornes, 48—St. Paul
Rex Trotterchaude, 43—Duluth
Charles “Chuck” Venne, 41—Duluth
Paul Villbraun, 40—Duluth
Mike Wilk, 64—St. Paul
Armond Quinton Williams, 35—Hennepin County
Lynn Williams, 43—St. Paul
James Edward Wimbush Sr., 63—Hennepin County
Jeremiah Wofford, 1—Maplewood
Conrad Yeske—Duluth
Jim, 58—Duluth
Mario—Minneapolis
Unknown—Minneapolis
Unknown Girl, 7—Wahkon
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