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Pearl Cahall, July 9, 1912—June 20, 2000
“I used to sleep in the bed next to Pearl’s. I watched as the procession of nurses and social workers came through trying to move Pearl into another place. They would argue with her and argue with her and leave, one by one. Pearl was an inspiration to all of us homeless women not to accept what people were trying to get us to do if it wasn’t right for us.” –G., at a July 9, 2000 Memorial Service at Noel House
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Ethel “Cookie” Cooke, 1923—1995
Ethel Cooke (known by most of her friends as “Cookie” or “Dr Cookie”) died early in the morning of April 17, 1995 at Noel House, 2301 Second Avenue, Seattle. She had been ill with a congestive heart and pneumonia, and chose not to receive medical care when it was offered the night she died, fulfilling her wish to die at “home” and not in the hospital.
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Noel Dennis, 1927—1991
Noel Dennis was one of the earliest residents of the Catholic Community Services Winter Women’s Shelter that grew into Noel House. She was quiet, but unbelievably generous. She gathered magazines, clothing, and other things to give to her homeless sisters in the shelter. She used to sit in the reclining chair in the shelter lobby, and often fell asleep there. When Noel died on August 4th, 1991, we got a call from the Medical Examiners Office. Noel had named the shelter as her next of kin. The women of the shelter later chose to name the program in memory of this precious individual, saying, “we shall always remember her gentle…
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Gayle Douglas Grant, 1962—2010
Gayle had found housing at Rose House at the time of her death. Before that she was a resident of Noel House. She was beloved in many places. Gayle was run over and killed at the corner of 2nd and Bell, in front of Noel House, while waiting for the traffic light. Gayle’s leaf is placed at Noel House.
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Janice Hibbert, 1942—1996
Words by Michele Marchand Originally published in Real Change June 1996 Janice Hibbert, friend to WHEEL, Noel House, and Church of Mary Magdalene, died on April 5th [1996] after a short but intense struggle with breast cancer. She will be sorely missed. Janice began working with WHEEL (Women’s Housing, Equality and Enhancement League) last fall during the planning process for the Homeless Women’s Forum. She was homeless herself; had taken leadership at one of our self-managed shelters, and was committed to finding ways to destigmatize homelessness for her sisters at the same time she worked on finding herself a job. She’d been a registered nurse most of her adult life,…
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Margaret Jackson, 1953—1994
Beloved longterm member of Noel House, Angelines and DESC (Downtown Emergency Service Center). Margaret Jackson: A Woman of Will by Margaret King First printed in the premiere issue of Real Change, September 1994 Margaret Jackson died in March of this year after struggling with many health problems, primarily advanced lung disease. The last six weeks of her life were a grueling physical and emotional struggle for Margaret, entailing a revolving door of hospitalization and uncountable amounts of medication. Given her awesome strength of will (which all who knew her were familiar with) she fought hard to overcome what ailed her. But she told me many times in those weeks that…
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Brandi Lambert, 1974—2010
Brandi was a member of Mary’s Place, Matt Talbot Center, and Angelines, and she had many friends at Noel House. She was loved by many people. Leaf Location: Noel House
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Verna Maxwell, 1933—2001
Saying Goodbye to Verna Maxwell by Michele Marchand Originally published in Real Change November 15-28, 2001 Of all the things I did and all the things I said Let no one try to find out who I was An obstacle was there transforming The actions and the manner of my life An obstacle was often there To silence me when I began to speak -from “Hidden Things” by Constantine Cavafy During a recent renovation, Noel House shelter lost its archives. The archives, carefully prepared by a former staffperson, are contained in a simple scrapbook of photographs and clippings dating back to the shelter’s beginning. Its loss is unfortunate, since many…
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Jackie Ortega, 1952—2004
Jackie was well loved. She had housing at the time that she died, and was still active at Mary’s Place. A Women in Black vigil was dedicated to her memory. Jackie & her friend Queen are pictured in the 2004 Mary’s Place calendar, December: “We are friends to the end.” Queen and Jackie have helped each other through some difficult spots in their lives, and they’ve come out with a strong friendship and a stronger faith: “God is good. God is great. We are all a product of God’s goodness.” Featured Leaf December 2013
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Cynthia Ozimek, 1960—2005
Cynthia once wrote the following Self Portrait: Cynthia Lee Ozimek was born the daughter of an opera singer and sculptor turned steel worker on May 13, 1960. Raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, she attended college at St. Petersburg Jr. College in Tarpon Springs Florida and lived in both the state of Georgia and Arizona before moving to Seattle in the early 1990s. Despite suffering the ramifications of homelessness in the literal sense, Cynthia has found great joy, solace and belonging in the community of women where she has resided, on and off, for the past several years. To this end, she has made it her mission, through the written and spoken…
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Kim Peterson, 1956—2006
Messing in All God’s Business by Michele Marchand originally published in Real Change Just after Kim Peterson took her last breath, her mother turned to Pastor Pat Simpson of Church of Mary Magdalene and said, “She’s probably up there right now messing in all God’s business.” Kim was always messing in God’s business. She didn’t know the meaning of the words, “Leave well enough alone.” If there was even a minor injustice, Kim would speak up about it. If there was a glimmer of gossip, Kim would know about it, and would share it wherever she went. She was a fighter, until the end. She faced unimaginable and terrifying hardships–the…
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Cassandra “Cassie” Phillips, 1974—2010
Cassie Phillips was active in the founding of Nickelsville, in WHEEL homeless women’s organizing efforts, and at the Real Change street newspaper. In addition to selling Real Change, she was a member of the Real Change Editorial Committee and part of the Real Change Homeless Speaker’s Bureau. She made jewelry, crocheted and read tarot cards, and she was a published poet. Many people greatly miss her. Cassie got a room at Jubilee Women’s Center just a few weeks before her death. Her leaf is placed at Noel House.
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Cecelia “CC” Phillips, 1954—2009
Cecelia was a longterm member of Noel House who moved into housing. She’d been living at 1811 Eastlake when she died. Her body was found at 1st & Battery, a few blocks from Noel House. Cecelia’s leaf is placed at Noel House/Bakhita Gardens.
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Rosetta Richardson, ?—1994
Rosetta was a dignified lady, with a great sense of humor. She was a longterm member of Noel House. Rosetta died at the shelter in spring 1994. Hers was the first death at the shelter. Rosetta’s leaf is placed at Bakhita Gardens/Noel House. If you have memories of Rosetta, please post in the comments. Featured Leaf February 2015
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Laura Scovell, 1968—2010
by Sharon Poole, Community Liaison, Noel House Programs: Not much is known about Laura Scovell and she wasn’t known for making friends. But her presence and impact on my experience working at emergency shelters was very significant. When I think of Laura, I’m reminded of why it’s so important to work on behalf of homeless women. Laura suffered from a mental illness that left her isolated and desperate. During the last several years of her life, it was clear that she spent her days and nights just trying to meet her basic needs at each given moment. It was easy to get frustrated with the way Laura asked for help…