newBEGINNING

PLEASE MEET DZY:

It started with Lydia. At the end of last September she read a post on this page about Dzy, about him not being sure if he could survive another winter in a tent.

Lydia and family responded by donating their van to Dzy, wowWOW!!

They put a new battery in it, outfitted it with curtains for privacy, and purchased a small heater along with some fuel and a carbon monoxide sensor to make it warm and safe!

It's hard to measure the importance of this kindness. To know what would have happened if they had not reached out. What we do know is that Dzy is in a better place making positive change in his life. Among other improvements, he now has 10 days off of heroin.

Dzy is a talented musician. He busks around town to cover food and phone bills, and now fuel for the van. Off heroin, he's able to save money earned, ready to rent a room for $500 a month. It's a big step. Right now he's $150 short, hoping we can help him get inside.

UPDATE: The Paypal link has been pulled in that the goal of raising $150 has been reached with $352.67 donated, wowWOW!!! I know this will mean a great deal to Dzy in his journey forward. A heartfelt THANK YOU!!! All funds will be paid directly to Dzy's landlord with no funds going to Dzy directly and, as is always the case, no funds to go to Facing Homelessness.

Thank you Lydia for putting all of this goodness in motion with your beautiful KINDNESS!!!

Fremont Neighborhood | Rex

A QUIET THOUGHT - If you're moved by the goodness of this community, please visit http://www.facinghomelessness.org/ and click on the 'donate' button and consider a "monthly recurring" donation of just $5 in support of the work. THANK YOU!
#JustSayHello #Kindness #FacingHomelessness Lydia Sigo

whereyouLIVE

WHERE YOU LIVE DOES NOT DEFINE WHO YOU ARE:

Our goal for the first day of our fuundraiser was to raise $20K and WE DID IT with $23,211.00 donated, wowWOW!! A heartfelt thank you to everyone that reached out in support. WE LOVE YOU!!!

We still have a long way to go.

https://www.classy.org/campaign/2019-end-of-year-campaign-or-facing-homelessness/c256387

To begin our second day of the fundraiser, we want to share another coreBELIEF we hold important to our work, one that reminds us daily to meet people where they are at, to come openly to each person without judgment.

"Where you live does not define who you are."

Our friend Dzy has lived in the Ballard, Fremont and Wallingford neighborhoods for years. Most of that time he's spent surviving nights in a tent and days playing guitar for folks on the sidewalk, busking for what little he lives on.

It would be easy to pass judgment on Dzy. To see him come out of a tent and say to yourself, or out loud, "Get a job."

But come closer. Spend time with Dzy. You'll learn he not only is a phenomenal musician, but that he is funny, and kind, and good, and someone you become grateful to know.

I am not pointing fingers, I would have to point them at myself first, but damn it, all the judging needs to stop. We must open ourselves to see the beauty that exists in everyone.

"Where you live does not define who you are."

By the end of the day today, to stay on track for reaching a goal of $175K donated in 7-days, we need to raise at least another $15,000.00. Please help us.

https://www.classy.org/campaign/2019-end-of-year-campaign-or-facing-homelessness/c256387

I know we can do it. For almost 10 years this community has met every single ASK on this page for those in need. YES, every single ASK! That is honestly unbelievable to me and gives me hope that this same community will reach out to help us continue this work.

THANK YOU from the Facing Homelessness staff and board!

www.facinghomelessness.org

warmthSAFETY

PLEASE MEET DZY:

I've seen what it looks like for Dzy to live through numerous winters in a tent, makes my heart hurt for him, the hurt getting worse over the years, as our friendship got closer and his beauty of person clearer.

Three days ago Dzy went from living in a tent to living in a van. A world of difference just in warmth and safety. A big beautiful heartfelt THANK YOU Lydia, Kristen and Landon for your kindness!

To hear about their genuine KINDNESS, please read the post before this one, it will make your heart sing!

New tabs and change of ownership cost $233.50. Hoping this community can help cover the cost. Thank you so much.

https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=ZWCCLH9QCDJ3A&source=url

There are over 12,000 people experiencing homelessness in King County. That should make all of us stop in our tracks and ask, what are we making more important than each other.

Here is part of what Lydia said in the previous post, it is worth taking to heart. "We come from the Suquamish tribal community and an important part of our culture is the potlatch. Potlatch is a ceremony where we share our abundance with our community, our neighbors, our family and friends. In our Coast Salish tribal way, wealth is shown by what you give, not by what your keep for yourself. Being good hosts in our traditional lands is one of our cultural values and that's why it's important for my community to give back to those experiencing homelessness. Our tribal communities know what it is like to live in poverty and we want to lift up our most vulnerable neighbors and show them that they're loved."

I want to live in a world where we make people more important than things. We can do this. We can just begin with the person next to us, and then, the next person, and the next.

Wallingford neighborhood | Rex

A QUIET THOUGHT - If you're moved by the goodness of this community, please visit http://www.facinghomelessness.org/ and click on the 'donate' button and consider a "monthly recurring" donation of just $5 in support of the work. THANK YOU!
#Kindness #JustSayHello #FacingHomelessness #ChiefSeattleClub Chief Seattle Club

culturalVALUES

PLEASE MEET LYDIA:

Two weeks ago we made the long-shot ASK for a used van for our friend Dzy who experiences chronic homelessness. He's worried about the approaching nasty winter weather.

Almost immediately Lydia Sigo let us know her sister Kristen and her brother-in-law Landon had decided they wanted to give Dzy their van, just like that, wowWOW!!

Lydia drove the van from Bainbridge Island to meet us early Saturday morning at the University License Agency. When Dzy saw the van he smiled soBIG! Lydia had sewn curtains for the windows, put a mattress and blankets inside and included a little buddy heater with about (6) propane bottles and a carbon monoxide sensor. Oh yeah, they also installed a new car battery, just cuz!

You know when you meet those people in your life that you can tell instantly they are pureKINDNESS, even before they lift one little finger, that is Lydia! She's honestly totally WONDERFULLY KIND!

Lydia and her friend Bryna also come to Seattle regularly to do outreach, handing out clothing and food collected from their community to give to those struggling on our streets.

I asked her how it is that she has so much compassion for those in need? Lydia replied, "We come from the Suquamish tribal community and an important part of our culture is the potlatch. Potlatch is a ceremony where we share our abundance with our community, our neighbors, our family and friends. In our Coast Salish tribal way, wealth is shown by what you give, not by what your keep for yourself. Being good hosts in our traditional lands is one of our cultural values and that's why it's important for my community to give back to those experiencing homelessness. Our tribal communities know what it is like to live in poverty and we want to lift up our most vulnerable neighbors and show them that they're loved."

A heartfelt THANK YOU Lydia, Kristen and Landon for your beautiful act of kindness towards Dzy and your beautiful loving message of lifting up our most vulnerable neighbors.

University District neighborhood | Rex

A QUIET THOUGHT - If you're moved by the goodness of this community, please visit http://www.facinghomelessness.org/ and click on the 'donate' button and consider a "monthly recurring" donation of just $5 in support of the work. THANK YOU!
#Kindness #FacingHomelessness #JustSayHello Chief Seattle Club

beautifulPERSON

PLEASE MEET DZY

Over the last week I must have heard ten times something about summer being over, comments like, "You can feel the season changing, it's in the air, summer is gone, winter will be here soon." Or simply, "How was your summer?"

For the homeless this is no small thing. It adds a serious layer of complexity to surviving. In the chronically homeless you can feel it, they begin to hunker down, they know what's coming. Wind and rain. Storms that soak everything through and through, including the cold ground. Wet socks are worn for days. Then there is the darkness. People that shared a smile on warmer days, now rush past without saying hello, without looking up. The cold is everywhere.

Dzy is chronically homeless, he lives in a tent but is having a tough time imagining another winter. For the first time I can see he's worried.

I love Dzy, for lots of reasons. He has a warmth in his voice and also in his views of the world around him. He's always kind, even in the middle of his suffering. There are times when I ask him difficult questions and I'll say, "I hope you don't mind me asking?" He'll reply with something like, "No, not at all, I know you love me."

I am making an ask of our community for a beat-up broken down van, one that Dzy can live in through the winter. It just has to be able to move a block or two every 72 hours to avoid impound. I know this would mean the world to him, to have some shelter going into the approaching winter.

A big community size LOVE to you Dzy, you are a beautiful person through and through.

Fremont neighborhood | Rex

A QUIET THOUGHT - If you're moved by the goodness of this community, please visit http://www.facinghomelessness.org/ and click on the 'donate' button and consider a "monthly recurring" donation of just $5 in support of the work. THANK YOU!
#Kindness #JustSayHello #FacingHomelessness