The word from the street
We’ve raised $1,300 and still counting! Thank you to all. If you would like to participate, you’re invited to leave a donation at the counter at Alternative Grounds, Another Story and Mabel’s Bakery.
The photo is from our posting of Oct 25, 2007. The wreath and candles were placed anonomously in memory of Silvio, a homeless man who was beaten up and left to die nearby.
Tony’s obituary from today’s Toronto Star.
Funeral Details: The reception will be held tomorrow at the Turner & Porter Funeral Home, 436 Roncesvalles Ave., Toronto (at Howard Park Ave.), from 6-9 p.m. on Tuesday, October 25. Funeral Mass will be held at St. Vincent de Paul Church, 263 Roncesvalles Ave. (at High Park Blvd), Toronto, on Wednesday, October 26, 2011 at 11am.
(The photo above is from our post of June 23, 2009.)
Philip
Hello all,
Wow. The billowing response to Tony’s death is quite beyond what he might have imagined or hoped. He would have been delighted.
Ten days ago, in anticipation of the fifth anniversary of HomelessManSpeaks (October 23rd), I asked Tony what big difference the blog had made for him. His answer: “I found out I could get to the kids and tell them … don’t do what I did … they’ve gotta stick it out in school and just stay away from drugs and alcohol and especially the hard stuff.” (A terrible fact: Tony was first coaxed into using opiates at the age of thirteen.)
As to memorial services and such, watch this space — people are working on it. Tentatively, we’re planning a reception at Alternative Grounds sometime this weekend.
See the many, many extraordinary comments to the previous post.
TONY
“Well that’s another of us gone. Did you know that Marty’s dead? He just died over the weekend.”
PHILIP
“Who’s Marty?”
TONY
“You know the short homeless guy who was selling the newspapers in front of Sobey’s just down Ronces? Well he died.”
PHILIP
“Sure, I remember him but I didn’t know his name was Marty. He seemed a nice guy to me.”
TONY
“He was saying how he was feeling terrible and went to the hospital on Saturday and he had a heart attack and he died Sunday. You know he was turning 50 next week, eh?”
PHILIP
“You mean 60? He couldn’t have been just 49. He looked way too old for being 49.”
TONY
“Well let me tell you, he put a lot of things into himself in his life that shouldn’t have been put in there — and he liked a drink too so you know what I mean.”
PHILIP
“Did you hear about the homeless guy who killed the cop with a snow plow?”
TONY
“Well it just shows you that homeless folks can be psycho as anyone else is. I just feel sorry for that cop’s family is all I can say.”
PHILIP
“It looks like it’s going to rain.”
TONY
“If you think about it, it’s gotta to rain sometimes.”
TONY
“I told you about Dave dying two days ago?
PHILIP
“No, you never told me that. That’s sad. He was a really nice person. He was very gentle. Someone told me that he was a big reader. Anyway, that is really sad.”
TONY
It was that mouthwash drinking that did it; everybody knew it was going happen. Almost happened a few times already. His liver just died, sort of.”
PHILIP
“And who’s your other friend who died?”
TONY
“You know the guy who jumped from the apartment building around the corner the other day?”
PHILIP
“Yeah, I heard about it but I didn’t get it that he was your friend. You know I’ve had way too much experience with suicides. Can you imagine how bad you’ve got to feel to go jump like he did.”
TONY
“Pretty sad.”
PHILIP
“Yup, pretty sad.”
PHILIP
“What’s new?”
TONY
“You hear about the cyclist who was killed up there on Dundas at Sterling Road, you know on the overpass there? The guy driving his car, he was sending messages with his cell phone, it’s what they call ‘texting’.”
PHILIP
“Oh my god! When was this?”
TONY
“Just the other day. That driver is in for a ton of trouble. Manslaughter for sure, if you ask me.”
TONY
“You know that guy Stan, he sometimes hung around that new place you sometimes go. You know, ‘Lit‘, down the street there, you know that one, the one called ‘Lit’. Anyway they found him lying dead there where he got that room, down on King there. That’s another one down. We’re falling like flies, if you know what I mean.”
TONY
“You see that guy with the black and yellow jacket? He’s going to be the next one to die.
PHILIP
“What do you mean by ‘next guy to die’ ?”
TONY
“You know, after Lefty. We did a post on the blog about him. You remember?
PHILIP
“OK, now I get it. Why is he going to die next?”
TONY
“It’s pretty simple. He told me the other day.”
TONY
“My friend Lefty died on Thursday last week. You know, he’s the one who was homeless and was in front of the Beer Store over on Dundas. Man, there were tears that came to my eyes when I heard about him. I want to pass on my sincerest condolences to everyone in his family. You know, in a way, Lefty died from loneliness.”
……..
Addendum (July 8): Tony found a great article about Lefty in the Toronto Star of July 5th.
TONY
“You’ve just gotta be kidding me? Somebody out there is saying that I got a van and an apartment — they even said it was a pretty nice place ? What planet is she from?”
You know, if she’s saying that it’s that I’m lazy, I got news for you, you try doing what I do every day and see how far you’ll get if you act lazy. If you ask me, I’d be dead in a week.”
TONY
“We’re losing another homeless guy.”
PHILIP
“Who’s that?”
TONY
“You remember when I told you about the homeless guy up the street, the guy who was drinking mouthwash? He’s in the hospital — has been for 3 days now. The doctors figure for sure he ain’t coming out of that hospital on his own steam, if you know what I mean.”
PHILIP
“How do you know this?”
TONY
“I spoke one of his other friends last night. The guy says that everyone’s done whatever they could to help the guy, but his insides were totally rotted out. You know, we’re just falling like flies now.”
Homeless Man Speaks 