Man in hospital reunited with Street Angels with help from a note
MILWAUKEE - A homeless man spent 46 days in the hospital before anyone knew his identity.
The founders of the Street Angels said they were looking for a friend they had helped for years for several weeks, until a simple note reunited them.
Four words led to the emotional reunion 46 days in the making.
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Note for the Street Angels
"It blows my mind that that was the first thing he wrote," Street Angels co-founder Shelly Sarasin said.
A homeless stroke survivor used all his strength to write this message to let hospital staffers know who to call:
"It said, ‘I'm with Street Angels, Shelly of Street Angels,’" Sarasin said.
She said they had been looking for their friend, Jason, for weeks.
"In November, around Thanksgiving, our friend went missing and I thought with the colder temperatures and warming rooms opening up, maybe he had gone inside," she said. "As the weeks went on, I became a little more worried. I called the medical examiner on a couple different occasions."
That was until he recently was able to write down his name, date of birth and her organization’s name.
"[The] hospital social worker reached out and asked if I knew who this person was," Sarasin said.
Street Angels co-founder Shelly Sarasin
The Street Angels then rushed to the hospital.
"You could see just the instant emotion that he underwent," she recalled.
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With a long recovery ahead, Sarasin said she knows he is grateful for his support system.
"We may not be able to end a person's homelessness in that moment, but we can be a friend," she said. "And we can be a family, and for so many, that's all they have."
Street Angels bracelets
The Street Angels are ordering "Jason’s Bracelets," engraved with their contact information, for all of their friends.
"Maybe that’ll help a little bit sooner, that we wouldn't have to worry," Sarasin said.
Those interested in sending cards to Jason in the hospital can send them to the Street Angels at:
125 North 120th Street
Wauwatosa, WI 53226
Or:
PO BOX 342435
Milwaukee, WI 53234
Office Phone: 414-930-0028