SNOHOMISH COUNTY SECTION H
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THE DAILY HERALD
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Gives
WWW.HERALDNET.COM/LIFE
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SUNDAY, 12.08.2019
PHOTOS BY DAN BATES / THE HERALD
MercyWatch volunteers Duane Schireman and Van Phan greet other helpers at an Everett church parking lot recently before heading out to provide help and supplies to people living on the streets. MercyWatch is a faith-based nonprofit.
Taking it to the streets MercyWatch outreach, medical teams inspired by faith By Julie Muhlstein Herald Writer
EVERETT — Pope Francis, during a 2015 Lenten service at St. Peter’s Basilica, made an announcement that would reverberate from Vatican City around the world — eventually bringing help and kindness to people on the streets here. When the pope proclaimed a Holy Year of Mercy for 2016, Dennis Kelly took it to heart. A Catholic deacon who lives in Mukilteo, Kelly is the founder and executive director of MercyWatch. With a hardy and committed team of volunteers, doctors and nurses among them, the faith-based ecumenical nonprofit provides medical help and homeless outreach to people on the streets in Snohomish County. On a cold Tuesday night last month, Kelly had shed the vestments he often wears as leader at Christ Our Hope Catholic Church, a parish in an old hotel building in downtown Seattle that’s now low-income housing. He also serves at Seattle’s St. Patrick Parish. Kelly was once Archbishop Murphy High School’s campus minister. He served at Everett’s Immaculate Conception and Our Lady of Perpetual Help parishes. These days — and nights — he puts a high priority on being present to those on the streets, people struggling with addiction, mental health crises and poverty. Instead of a cleric’s vestments, Kelly wore a reflective yellow vest over his coat on that cold night in Everett. Meeting in a parking lot at Our Lady of Perpetual Help on Cedar Street, MercyWatch team members showed up, one by one. In their cars and in a storage space at the north Everett church, they had snacks, water, blankets and medical supplies. They drove to a parking lot on Hoyt Avenue, across from the Everett Public Library, where more than a dozen people were waiting for them in the night cold. Questions for the helpers came quickly: Are there any more blankets? What is there to eat? That night, there were instant noodles, packages of cookies and bottled water. One skinny young man, carrying a sack and a skateboard, simply said “I need everything.” He was given the last pair of available socks. “This is the only Tuesday feed in this part of Everett,” Kelly said. “They’re pretty hungry.” Clearly trusted by those on the street, Kelly greeted people by name. “Michael, how goes it?” Kelly said to one man, and then told how the 50-year-old Michael had been helped to get a
MercyWatch volunteers pray together in an Everett church parking lot before heading out to offer food, supplies and medical care to people living on the streets. From left are Dr. Jimmy Grierson, Deacon Dennis Kelly, Rodney Wagar, Sheri Dehaan, Ann Salonen, Gail Pyper, Amanda Dahl, and Duane Schireman.
hearing aid. One woman asked for $2 to get gas. Kelly didn’t give her cash, nor did he turn down the request. If she could wait a bit, he said patiently, he’d take her to a nearby Safeway and buy the gas. A woman who said she’s 55 and her name is Kebyn was pushing a stroller with a cover on it. Jammed in the stroller’s enclosed seating were her only companions — two cats and three small dogs. “At least we’re not sleeping in somebody’s yard,” she said, adding that she came from Wyoming and was staying in her broken-down vehicle. Van Phan, an 80-year-old retired nurse, was there to help. Along with volunteering with MercyWatch, the Everett woman is a hospice and prison ministry helper. From her Catholic Daughters group, she collects blankets, socks and gloves to be shared through MercyWatch. See MERCY, Page 2
Dennis Kelly, a Catholic deacon, founded MercyWatch after being inspired by Pope Francis, who designated 2016 as a Holy Year of Mercy. The Everett-based nonprofit serves people living on the streets. Here, Kelly shows his concern while talking with Dr. Jimmy Grierson, a MercyWatch volunteer.
INSIDE THIS SECTION ■ Camano Animal Shelter rehabilitates special-needs animals. 4
■ Women for Sobriety takes a postive approach to recovery. 6
■ Girls on the Run of Snohomish County helps kids find their “happy pace.” 8
■ Interfaith shelter finds creative ways to expand its reach. 10
■ Monroe nonprofit helps students, homeless and everybody in between. 11
■ Church offers the blessing of free car care for single moms. 13
■ Assistance League has helped more than 100,000 school kids over the years. 16
■ EvCC Foundation offers help with the high cost of education. 18