(this is a repost of something written by 1pedicabdriver over @ fresno famous. i thought it was important, thoughtful, and am reposting it here. it deals with this story from the bee.)
I love to pedal, be it a bicycle or a pedicab. I don't ride as much as some, and a little more than others. And today I learned about the death of a fellow cyclist whom I have never met but feel the camaraderie that bicyclists feel when passing one another on the road.
A mutual friend was telling me of the cyclists death. He conveyed to me his final moments and the sense of loss he felt for a friend, having tried to resuscitate him through CPR. As I listened to the story I thought of my own mortality as a cyclist and the what-if's of dying from a heart attack.
I was told that the cyclist's obituary was in Tuesday's paper and that I should check it out. I don't get the paper except on the weekends so I asked a friend for the "local and state" section of the paper because I wanted to read the obit.
Upon looking through the "local and state" section I came across one of those often overlooked stories on page B2 titled: Driver sought in hit-run death in Tower District." I was thinking that I spend a lot of time in the Tower and I don't recall hearing of anyone dying.
So I started reading the brief summary of events. On May 31st I was heading home from a night of pedicabbing in the Tower and remember seeing what seemed to be a dozen black and whites parked in the south-bound lanes of Palm Ave, just south of Olive. I pondered what could possibly require so many police cars?
Well, nearly 10 days later I now have the answer. The homeless man known to me only as Matthew (Matthew Victor according to the report) was involved in a hit and run accident and killed. I suppose that to many the death of a homeless man isn't really important.
I saw Matthew as much as I saw some of my regular fares. I always saw him together with his black and white dog Lefty on Olive between the vacant lot (now a garden) behind and the Brass Unicorn and taking up a spot by the Circle K. I gave him a dollar here and a dollar there. I along with others gave him food for his dog.
On Wednesday I learned about the death of two men from opposite ends of the spectrum. I had something in common with both men. One I shared a love of cycling, the other I shared a neighborhood. One man is remembered in death, the other forgotten.
3 comments:
Thank you for posting that Ed. If I am thinking of the right guy did he have a beard and walked with the shopping cart?
He always looked pretty out of it so unfortunately it doesnt suprise me that this happened. And I am not saying he was even at fault in this situation just that it seemed like it was only a matter of time before something tragic happened. Thats what makes it sad, anyone could easily see that he was in a bad place yet no one did anything or nothing could be done.
lulu,
that's the guy. it just depresses me to think about the issue of homelessness in our city. i know the guy had alcohol problems, and i'm sure that put him on the streets, but he was still a person. no one should get murdered by a hit and run driver, and then just left behind like trash.
It was so sad to hear about Matt's death, he was always in Tower and you could run into him quite often. There is a memorial service being held for him, I'm not sure of the particulars, but I know it's on Sunday. It's nice that there are people that are not willing to let his death go unmourned. He was a person and I truly hope they get the driver.
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