Last week, a small group of neighbors gathered in Lake City to say goodbye to seven people who died on the streets or under medical care over the last year.
I knew all but one of them.
I knew Lee the best as he volunteered at the Homeless Drop-in center, where I spent several days a week over the last six years. He shared remarkable insights from his military career to the difficulties and challenges of living on the margins. I never trespassed with my questions, so his history is incomplete as much as I would like to share it.
I miss talking with him.
Milan Lee Lattan 1948 -2020
Derrick Frost 1967 – 2019
James Favors 1997 – 2021
Rainy Griffin 1967 – 2021
John Leyden 1963 – 2020
Anna Tomahawk Tailfeathers 1959 -2021
Samuel Black Jr. 1961 -2021
This sad annual event has been coordinated for years by Women in Black ( News story ) who stand silently wherever a homeless person has died in the streets.
Seattle Mennonite Church and the Lake City Homeless Coalition have also hosted this particular neighborhood memorial yearly.
We All Deserve Better 