Memorial pays respects to 32 homeless Arkansans who died without shelter

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Remembering the Forgotten Illustration
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Remembering the Forgotten Illustration

The flames from 33 candles flickered at the front of the church, casting a soft glow on the room where attendees at a memorial service -- for the homeless people who have died in central Arkansas -- were singing quietly.

Hold on, if you feel like letting go

Hold on, it gets better than you know.

Homeless care providers and friends of the homeless community gathered five days before Christmas to remember the lives "often overlooked," of those who died because of their experience living without housing in central Arkansas.

There were 32 names listed. Nine of those deaths occurred in 2017. As the music played, a candle was lighted for each name, and a bell chimed after each was read.

Terry McClinton. Always wore a black, leather coat, no matter how hot it got outside. Asked for two aspirin at Jericho Way every morning, and was careful to hold the door open for others. Found dead in his car.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's 2017 Annual Homelessness Assessment Report to Congress stated that on a given night, 553,742 -- or 17 per 10,000 -- people were homeless in the United States.

Monty Abeyta-Frye. Dead. His name was written on the board with a message: "Love u. Miss u."

The report shows that 2,467 people in Arkansas are homeless on a given night, a low estimate according to regional homeless censuses from 2017.

Harvey Sontag. Had two daughters and worked as an accountant. Found dead in a drainage ditch in west Little Rock.

The service was a local observance of the National Homeless Persons' Memorial Service, held annually by independent groups around the nation on Dec. 21 in a movement encouraged by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Coalition for the Homeless. The memorial has been held since 1990, according to the CDC (bit.ly/2Aj24cD).

Willie Junel. 72 years old. Found dead outside.

Dec. 21 was the shortest day and longest night of the year. It was the first time Little Rock advocates held a memorial as part of the movement.

Cornell James Drones. Attempted to rob two people who were making a deposit at a bank. Shot to death during the attempt.

That day, #nomorehomelessdeaths was trending on Twitter as advocates posted about the need for cheaper housing and health care measures to help alleviate the problem.

Lynn Sellers. His cousin made sure his name was written on the board. Died because of complications related to cancer.

Little Rock's list was longer than those of many cities because it included all of the homeless people who have died in Little Rock within the last several years. Next year's event will include only those who died in 2018. Mandy Davis, director of the Jericho Way day center, said she expects that will be about 10 people.

She helped organize the memorial. "These are our dead," she said.

Calvin Farmer. Found dead in a parking deck.

At least a dozen cities had record numbers of deaths in their homeless populations in 2017, said Diane Yentel, president of the National Low Income Housing Coalition. The Washington-based coalition advocates for affordable housing and federal support for homeless people.

Addie Mae Pierce. Went by Lulu. Dead.

The need for affordable housing has grown at the national level. In 2017, a study by the coalition found a shortage of about 7.4 million homes for low-income families.

Chris Kiaer. Went to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and had a "huge laugh," a friend said. Hit by a city bus.

"It's a tragedy any time it happens, but especially in this country where we have so many resources. ... It's a terrible reflection on our national priorities," Yentel said.

"Mexican Mike." Had a baby on the way and was selling cigarettes to get back to California to see his child. Always carried spicy candy. Shot to death.

Although the need for low-income housing is growing, Yentel said, there is not yet enough national consciousness to get lawmakers to make changes necessary to get people off the streets.

"Fast Freddie." Could quote long passages of the Bible. Known as an Elvis impersonator. One of the first people The Van helped. Dead.

Aaron Reddin, founder of The Van, attended the Little Rock service. The Van is a nonprofit that takes supplies and food to people living outside in Little Rock and North Little Rock. Reddin wrote the name of one of his friends on the board in black Sharpie.

Kathryn Pawlak. One of her friends with The Van was supposed to come back the day after she died and give her a black ski mask to stay warm. Shot to death in downtown Little Rock.

The Van operates Kathryn's House, named for Pawlak. It is a transitional housing facility for women who can stay there for weeks as they adjust to living inside again.

Marcus Tidwell. Didn't quite fit in with the rest of society, one of his friends said. Beaten to death during an argument over a blanket.

Transitional housing has fallen out of favor with the federal government in recent years. The Department of Housing and Urban Development now recommends the use of rapid rehousing, a strategy that places people into housing as quickly as it becomes available.

Fred Arnold. Went by "Blind Billy." One of the world's leading collectors of Beatles memorabilia. Hit by a car.

Arnold had spent years living on the streets of Little Rock, fitting the federal definition of chronically homeless -- someone who has a disability and has been homeless for a year or more. Arkansas has about 450 chronically homeless people, according to the 2017 report.

Scotty Smith. A friend from The Van described him as soft-spoken, humble and friendly. Originally from Tennessee and worked in construction. Dead.

A friend of Smith's said he struggled with alcoholism toward the end of his life. One in five homeless people have a mental illness or addiction, according to the department's 2016 report to Congress.

Harold Scott. Went by Bernard. Loved to play dominoes at Jericho Way. Dead at 43.

The Jericho Way day center is a project of Depaul USA Inc. that provides assistance such as food, laundry and showers for homeless people and is partly funded by the city of Little Rock.

Tina Moody. Had a hot temper. Friends had to lean over to give her a hug because she was short. Spent days at Jericho Way. Dead.

Fewer women are homeless than men -- about 40 percent of the street people in the United States are women. Women are also statistically more likely to stay in transitional housing or emergency shelters than men, according to data from the National Coalition to End Homelessness.

Dean Drake. Had just gotten a job cleaning at a church. Vietnam veteran. Died of hypothermia in his van.

Hypothermia sets in when the body's temperature drops below 95 degrees. During the winter, care providers said, they see an increase in the number of people who come to shelters to get out of the elements.

Frank Willie Ford. From Chicago. Found dead outside.

Next time, Davis said, she hopes the service will be held outside so attendees can experience the cold Little Rock's unsheltered population lives in.

Andre Bolton. Had a brother, sister and two children. Found dead behind a health club in Little Rock in August.

About 55 percent of Arkansas' homeless population is living outside, according to the most recent Point-in-Time Census results from the Central Arkansas Team Care for the Homeless.

Chris Tee. He drove a 2004 Ford Mustang. Died when his car caught on fire after a collision.

"I got really mad that so many Arkansans could be left outside, and I feel like we are a better place than that," Reddin said in November. "So we've got to make it that way."

Terry Coffey. Valedictorian of her high school class. Had two bachelor's degrees. Her favorite color was red. Drowned in a flash flood.

Coffey was living in a camp with her husband who also was washed away but survived. Many couples choose to stay outside rather than being separated in shelters that divide clients by gender.

Snuffy Fought. Had a brother. Killed under a bridge in Riverdale.

Reddin said some people also have trouble leaving their friends behind, which can make the switch from living outside more difficult.

Steve P. His friends don't know his last name. Killed under a bridge in Riverdale.

When the city of Little Rock attempted to create a list of when and where homeless people were fed in 2017, Reddin organized a protest, saying that the people camping in woods and under bridges around the city would be targeted for eviction by police.

Mr. Hemphill. No one knew his first name. His skeleton was found at a camp in southwest Little Rock.

One group at risk of becoming homeless is low-income people who rent their homes. A job loss or unexpected medical costs can put them on the street, according to a report from the National Alliance to End Homelessness, a nonprofit research and advocacy group.

Frank Knight. Came to Jericho Way. Advocates helped him get access to temporary housing and health care at the end of his life. Died of cancer.

Thirty-three states, mostly concentrated in the South and Midwest, reported decreases in their homeless populations between 2014 and 2015, according to the report. Arkansas saw nearly a 13 percent decrease in its homeless population.

Gary Goldman. Had a house and a car, but kept going back to his old haunts from when he was homeless to visit his friends. Died surrounded by his friends and family after an illness.

Despite several interviews at the memorial service and attempts to reach out to attendees afterward, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette was unable to obtain even a few details about five of those whose names were read.

Anthony Patterson. Dead.

Marty Frye. Dead.

David Chandler. Dead.

Jetta Thompson. Dead.

Sam Rockholt. Dead.

The list read at the service was informal and incomplete; many of the names were provided by homeless attendees, although the nine from 2017 were confirmed by the coroner, Davis said. Ben Goodwin, director of Our House, said at least three people known to his organization were left off.

A 33rd candle was lighted in honor of the unknown -- the unsheltered people who may have died, but none of their friends or the homeless care providers know where they are.

The service concluded after about 30 minutes. As attendees started to head home, some stopped to write on a painted piece of plywood the names of friends who had died while homeless.

Volunteers moved to take down the decorations and turn off the lights, blowing the candles out one by one.

photo

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Information about the Percentage of central Arkansas’ homeless who are unsheltered and Change in unsheltered homelessness

ActiveStyle on 01/08/2018

Upcoming Events