Sunday was not just another sunny day at Ballard Commons Park.
Clustered together in one corner was a mass of people. Ballard residents. Social service workers. Church volunteers. Activists. And most importantly, those who were homeless, and who were mourning the loss of their friends.
As part of the Homeless Remembrance Project, 25 names were imprinted in 25 gold leaves, honoring the (at least) 25 people who passed away in the past 10 years in the Ballard area. It is the largest cluster of leaves so far out of the 12 remembrance locations throughout Seattle.
"These Leaves of Remembrance bear witness: The sorrows and struggles of people living without a home are not nothing. There is courage here, and community, and hope. And all too often, there is death at a young age, grief for family and friends who will never forget comrades they loved. Now these leaves say, 'Our city must not forget!'" said Marcia McLaughlin, who sits on the committee of the Homeless Remembrance Project.
Darcey Kelley, who was friends with five of the people being memorialized, said she would otherwise have no grave to go to and pay respects.
"These fellas were close forever. They were brothers and sisters," Gary Walczewski, a friend of Kelley's, said of the five. "I just hope they're all up their playing poker and getting along."
Now, thanks to the insistence of Kelley, the five leaves bearing their names are laid together: Byron Barnes, Don Farquharson, Michael "Mikey" Hall, Dora Dundas and Kenneth Gilfeather. All of them passed away in the 2012 and 2013 years.
The names had stories behind them. Byron (1965-2013) and Don (1961-2012) were best friends, both Tlingit Alaskan natives. Byron was known as the "Keeper of Information" because he knew who was related to whom in the First Nations community. Don, who was a longshoreman, was known for being immaculate and clean, as well as for his trademark 80s mullet. Both were remembered as being funny and kind.
Kenneth Gilfeather, or just Gil (1959-2013), was declared by friends as the "Mayor of Friendship." He loved the outdoors and liked to spend time hiking, camping and fishing. In the past he had worked as a cook, groundsman, carpenter and painter (he helped paint SafeCo Field). More recently he was a vendor with the Real Change Newspaper and a volunteer at meal programs and several community outreach agencies.
"He was always so friendly," a friend told organizers of the remembrance event. "He was always so friendly. The guy had so many different hats, and clothes period. He loved hats! I loved how he would say, 'It's so good to see ya,' right before he'd say, 'Save me a puff.' He did a lot around the community, and he'll be missed by his friends.'"
At the event, one man came up in a wheelchair, bent down and left a cigarette underneath Gilfeather's leaf. "Save me puff," he said. "Save me a puff!" said Walczewski in response, nearby, laughing and reminiscing.
Organizers also used the event as a reminder to people to take action and push to provide shelter.
"It is time for change. It is time for Seattle and King County to provide shelter while it seeks to end homelessness," said McLaughlin, citing that there were a total of 34 homeless deaths in 2012. "The One Night Count in January of 2013 found 2,736 men, women and children who need shelter, an increase over 2012 despite the efforts to provide more shelter. There is work to do, the work of compassion, advocacy and justice-making that will someday bring homelessness to an end."
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