I’ve been in the street paper movement for 29 years, including both in D.C. and in Cincinnati, but experiencing these deaths makes it seem longer. I’ve had to process way too many passings and attend too many memorial services for the unhoused.

At least 78 people died while experiencing homelessness in D.C. in 2025. The community honored them at an annual vigil.

In 2023, for the first time, more than half of those who died while experiencing homelessness in Washington, D.C., died of an opioid overdose.

Dupont Circle mourns “dancing man” Dominique Ratiff, a beloved dancer and community member, whose spirit and generosity left a lasting impact.

On the longest night of the year, over 60 people marched through D.C.’s streets. They followed a group of six pallbearers carrying a bare, wooden coffin.

Dr. Goetcheus, a physician who profoundly shaped health care for people experiencing homelessness in the District, passed away on Oct. 26 at 84 years old.

To all my customers, I am distant because my Mom and my cat died. I am very sad after both deaths. I am on 19th and K Street NW…

Content warning: death, suicide 

It’s been nine months since my husband passed. I still don’t know what to do with myself. But I’m waking up.

DC Doors, a youth drop-in center in DC, is implementing new security measures after a shooting at the facility in December.

Robert Warren writes about his frustration and sadness with the amount of death he’s witnessed.

Randall Smith calls for an end to the bombing in the Israel-Hamas war.

The People for Fairness Coalition hosted its 11th annual vigil remembering people who died while homeless in 2023.

A Street Sense analysis found that in 2022, people experiencing homelessness were over twice as likely to be the victim of a homicide.

Carl Turner, a former Street Sense artist and vendor, died in September. He was 71.

Artist/Vendor Greta Christian shares thoughts about death.

Donté Turner reminds us of the impact we can all have even when we are not physically present.

Kym Parker shares how one can use grief to find inner strength and help others.

You are not alone — It’s many of us who do not have a home A place of our own…

Gabriela Ines Sevilla, Esq., a lawyer and advocate for people experiencing homelessness, died Oct. 10, 2022 at the age of 29.

Kym Parker expresses the pain humanity suffers everyday, while offering a powerful source of hope.