Steve BeCotte, president of the Long Beach Area Coalition for the Homeless and event organizer, speaks during the memorial service. Photos by Stephanie Rivera.
Thirty-two individuals who died in Long Beach while experiencing homelessness this year were remembered on a chilly Thursday evening by a couple dozen people who gathered at Forest Lawn cemetery in the city’s northside.
The date of the memorial held a particular significance as it coincides with National Homeless Persons’ Memorial Day, traditionally held on December 21, which is considered the first day of winter and the longest night of the year.
During the interfaith service, songs were sung and candles were lit as each of the 32 names were read. Many of those present included people who worked firsthand with these individuals that not many knew, including Shannon Parker, a homeless services officer with the city.
Guests read names and light candles in memory of homeless individuals who died in Long Beach this year.
Parker told the crowd that her compassion for the homeless was instilled in her by her parents.
“I grew up in a small town of Montana and my parents owned restaurants and we were always taught that anytime anyone came in there that was homeless that we were to give them a plate of food,” Parker said during the service. “We were not to go back and find day old food, we were not to give them food that somebody had left behind, we were to give them a plate of food just like any other paying customer.”
Guests light candles in memory of individuals who died while experiencing homelessness in Long Beach this year.
She called on those in attendance to remember when their compassion for others began and to remember that they are like the candle lights.
“With winter solstice drawing to a close tonight I want you all to remember that you are that light, you are that hope and that starting tomorrow you’ll get back to your jobs, back to your lives where this will be an important issue for you so lets have a bit of hope tonight, all of us together that care about this issue.”
While those who passed away all shared one common factor, that they lived a part of their life in the streets, each of their stories were unique.
Among those remembered was Doug Fogerty, an older gentleman who was one of the first clients of Justin Verga and Joel Davis, firefighter/paramedics with the Long Beach Fire Department’s year-old HEART team.
Fogerty liked to point out his name was like that of Creedence Clearwater Revival singer John Fogerty, Verga said.
“He would always sing us a song every time we’d see him,” Verga remembered. “He had a very warm personality and a very boisterous laugh.”
While Verga and Davis worked with Fogerty to get him back on his feet, he eventually got sick. The men took him to a hospital and were the only ones who visited him until he died there earlier this year. They were never able to find his relatives.
“He was just one of those people that nobody knew was out there and we got to know him and he basically passed away knowing at least a couple of people knew his name and cared about him,” Verga said.
Verga said that over the past year since he’s been part of the HEART team he’s developed crucial friendships and learned that everyone has a story.
“Most of our job is getting to that, getting to know them, building that rapport, building some trust, getting their story so if they do want to get help that’s how they get help by getting them to trust you and finding what their story is and finding out what they actually need.”
The following individuals were remembered:
- Allan Oakley Kent
- Beau Robert Wilkins
- Brandon C. Devitt-Arlee
- Bruce Patterson
- Curtis James Payne
- Cynthia Dortch
- David Matthew Phillips
- Donald Lewis James
- Eloy Joseph Chavez Jr.
- Eugene Anthony Less
- Franklin Bryant
- Freddy Charles Crawford
- Frederik Zane Batiste
- Jeffrey Scott Tegarden
- Jesus Cesar Martinez
- Jesus Magana Valencia
- Joseph Azzam Gammoh
- Kelly Leigh Vanegas
- Kimberly Crystal Ogren
- Mark Gerard Behr
- Michael Allen Atchley
- Michael Werner Mertz
- Michelle Renee Walker
- Ralph Dullamsingh
- Ramon Santarin
- Roy Russell Montgomery
- Sharron Lou Stone
- Sherri Lynn Turowski
- Tammy June Thomas
- Teejay Antario Wilson
- Thomas Wayne Slager
- Doug Fogerty