On Earth, just a teaspoon of neutron star
would weigh six billion tons. Six billion tons.
The equivalent weight of how much railway
it would take to get a third of the way to the sun.
It’s the collective weight of every animal
on earth. Times three.

Six billion tons sounds impossible
until I consider how it is to swallow grief—
just a teaspoon and one might as well have consumed
a neutron star. How dense it is,
how it carries inside it the memory of collapse.
How difficult it is to move then.
How impossible to believe that anything
could lift that weight.

There are many reasons to treat each other
with great tenderness. One is
the sheer miracle that we are here together
on a planet surrounded by dying stars.
One is that we cannot see what
anyone else has swallowed.

When Cassandra Sullivan, the owner of Tria Yoga in Peterborough, read “Watching My Friend Pretend Her Heart Is Not Breaking,” by Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer, before class, the weight of it took me to a subzero night on the townhouse steps where Monadnock Area Transitional Shelter board members and people from the community gathered to remember the list of individuals who had died homeless in 2024.

On Homeless Persons’ Memorial Day vigils, held each year around the winter solstice,
community members, service providers, friends and family gather to honor individuals who
have died while homeless.

Because of the cold last December, few people in Peterborough heard the 54 names and epitaphs board members of MATS read that night. It is important to remember those who die homeless in New Hampshire every year. Otherwise, people bury the problem of homelessness with them. For those who missed the 2024 vigil, here are the people we honored that night:

Josh Ellsworth died on Jan. 26 after a long struggle with addiction. He was 35 years old.
Josh was happiest when fishing, snowmobiling or hunting. He knew he was loved, loved his
family and had a huge heart. Despite his family’s efforts to free him from addiction, he never broke free.

Katherine Isaacs died on Feb. 4 at 63. She was Native American, had two adult children
and a brother nearby. She loved her two cats. Despite having survived several medical issues, she died of cardiac complications.

Ian Taylor Ours passed away on Aug. 23, at age 21. He was a brother, a friend and a
father.

Jason Place died on Dec. 6, at 55. He was a long-time resident of Lebanon. He was a DJ
on KIXX 100.5 and later became a co-host on the Jason and Traci in the Morning Show. Jason had a great disposition and made people smile.

Jason J. Noury, 48, passed on June 15 at Concord Hospital. He was born on March 4, 1976, in Haverhill, Mass. As a child, Jason excelled at hockey, and his love for sports continued into adulthood. His mother, four children, two sisters, many nieces, nephews, aunts, uncles and cousins survive him.

James Wingfield, the youngest homeless person in New Hampshire to die in 2024, died from cancer on July 26 at 18.

Kathy Willis died on Sept. 28 at 63. She grew up in Orford and graduated from Orford
High School with the class of 1979. Kathy was a cashier at Butson’s Supermarket in Lebanon and was living in Lebanon when she died.

Joel Bashaw, 61, died on Oct. 23 in Concord in a tragic bike accident. Joel was soft-
spoken, kind and grateful for the help he received from the people around him. He stayed at McKenna House, a 42-bed homeless shelter for single men and women. This program provides aid and support to help people transition to a more stable living situation. On and off over the past two years, Joel helped at the shelter. He also worked at the Salvation Army. Joel struggled with depression and substance use.

Justina Steffy died on Oct. 14 at 31. Justina lived in West Lebanon but had been staying in her car most recently. She was reported missing from Keene in early October. After a
three-week search, authorities found her remains in Warwick, Mass. She was a daughter, sister, mother and dear friend who brought love and light into the lives of those who
knew her. People remembered her upbeat attitude even when life challenged her.

Kenneth Jensen was born in Woburn, Mass., on Nov. 7, 1955. He spent most of
his time landscaping and held various construction positions. Kenneth was also a fisherman, a hiker and an avid outdoorsman. He camped with his children, loved to garden, loved music and played the harmonica.

When people experiencing homelessness die, the news rarely reaches the broader community. The identities of individuals who have died while experiencing homelessness are not usually released to the public because of privacy concerns. Official reports do not or cannot identify many who die homeless. Few of them have obituaries in the paper. This makes it challenging to compile a complete list of names and get an accurate account of who dies homeless each year.

Homelessness rose by 52% in New Hampshire from 2022 to 2023, faster than in any other state, according to the 2023 Annual Homelessness Assessment Report from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Preliminary counts also show a stark 71% increase in the number of people who were unsheltered in the state since 2023, according to a 2024 report from the New Hampshire Coalition to End Homelessness.

These figures come from a federal point-in-time count, which attempts to identify the number of people experiencing homelessness in a community on a single night in January. Advocates note that these figures are artificially low and underrepresent a community’s genuine needs.

In today’s world, the solutions to homelessness—providing affordable housing, reducing housing instability, housing assistance, addressing housing discrimination and so on—seem unattainable. So, what can you do? Take small steps by donating money, food or clothes to those in need. Ask your senator or congressperson what they are doing about this problem. It may seem insignificant, but if it makes a difference to one person, it is worth it.

On Saturday, Oct. 4, at 11:30 a.m. please join us for our second annual Empty Bowls
Fundraiser. Potters from around the region are donating bowls, and people are making delicious soup. Come to the Dub Hub, grab a bowl (which you keep) and buy some raffle tickets to support MATS.


Elizabeth Goodhue is a board member at Monadnock Area Transitional Shelter. MATS believes everyone deserves a safe place to call home and a chance to rebuild their lives with dignity. As a fully donation- and grant-funded nonprofit, we rely on the generosity of individuals, businesses and community partners to make that belief a reality. To learn more, visit matsnh.org.