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assist. In
February 2022, Woodward was back living on another street in the same neighborhood. Suarez said that there were problems with the housing they got him and that Woodward was now working for We Heart Seattle, driving a truck and making $ 22 an hour. Councilmember Strauss stated publicly "When people are moved around the neighborhood without addressing their housing needs, their behaviors remain the same, just in a new place. The outcome … is what I worried might happen." As of October 2022, Suarez reported that Woodward had chosen to move to family in Arizona.
122:, Suarez said that the group had permission from homeless camps to remove trash, and characterized WHS's work as "a form of protest for a more beautiful and clean Seattle". She criticized city policies that prevent immediate destruction of all possessions in a park and suggested that city safety policies and union work rules are preventing any progress in cleaning up city streets. With support from some local businesses, WHS volunteers continued collecting and disposing of trash in
165:
food although the community kitchen cooking at the event had no such requirement. They also observed Suarez comparing campers to "rats and dogs." Suarez later acknowledged the negative impact of her statements and apologized for early missteps. At another cleanup event, people observed a WHS volunteer entering a tent that had belonged to a homeless person. Suarez disavowed the actions of the volunteer, who apologized on social media.
199:
98:
In
November 2021, WHS made news for its outreach to Charles Woodward, a homeless man in Ballard nicknamed the "Lawnmower Man" for his collection of equipment. WHS had helped Woodward, who was at odds with the community for about a year, to leave the neighborhood when the city services were unable to
164:
groups have criticized We Heart
Seattle and Suarez for actions that they say are harmful to the homeless communities in parks where We Heart Seattle holds cleanup events. At a cleanup in January 2021, a park resident observed Suarez recommending that people pick up a bag of garbage in exchange for
63:
From
October 2020 to March 2021, WHS organized trash cleanup events at Denny Park, as well as other parks around the city. In March 2021 the city of Seattle subsequently "swept" the park, removing all homeless persons and their belongings from the premises. In May, one former Denny Park resident
184:
Some activists opposed to WHS have been hostile during interactions with them in parks, with behavior Suarez likened to "school yard bullying". Alycia
Ramirez, co-founder of mutual aid group Project Solidarity, and Aidan Carroll of the Cooperative Assembly of Cascadia have criticized We Heart
267:
and social media personality was named president of We Heart
Seattle in April 2022 and was also chapter leader of the Portland branch. He resigned his presidency in early 2023 to focus on his work in Gresham. Dahlgren was indicted on October 31, 2023, on charges of theft,
272:, and official misconduct for multiple incidents in 2020 and 2021. We Heart Seattle's president as of November 2023, Andrea Suarez, said that neither she nor We Heart Seattle's board had any direct knowledge of the facts related to the charges against Dahlgren.
67:
We Heart
Seattle began offering assistance to people camping in parks, and in late April 2021, WHS announced an intention to provide support, services, and housing options to residents of an encampment near Broadview-Thomson K-8 School in Seattle's
86:
interviewed a resident of the camp who described Suarez's typical routine as walking around for roughly 30 minutes, taking photos or videos, offering to pick up trash, and giving interviews to news reporters about the state of encampments.
254:
As of May 2022, WHS claimed to have transported three
Seattle residents and 13 Portland residents to Bybee Lakes. By August 30, 2022, the offshoot group We Heart Portland had helped 150 homeless people find resources and housing.
46:
neighborhood. The group organizes volunteer trash cleanups in public parks in which homeless people have established camps, primarily through a public
Facebook group and Facebook events. The group had a short-lived affiliate,
94:
reported that Suarez had personally driven at least one homeless resident from a
Seattle park to Bybee Lakes. The facility’s director at that time, Jeff Woodward, was also a member of We Heart Seattle’s board of directors.
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and "at least 10 other city leaders", she was told that WHS and its efforts were "disruptive and confusing" to homeless outreach efforts by the city and they were asked to stop their activities in parks. On the
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opinion columnist praised We Heart Seattle for taking responsibility and being active in cleaning up the city in November 2021, and in December 2021, Suarez was included in a
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449:"Andrea Suarez (I Heart Downtown Seattle) discusses how city leaders need to step up and clean the parks so the residents can use them again. - the Jason Rantz Show"
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In October 2022, We Heart Seattle volunteers stopped an attack in a tent near a cleanup site and assisted the victim by driving her to a tiny house village.
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reported that Suarez's actions at the encampment included photography and videography of the conditions and offers to take residents to facilities such as
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credited WHS with helping her and her partner get into an apartment, but others who returned to the park said nobody had offered them housing assistance.
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As of August 2021 the group had collected more than 150,000 pounds of trash and housed dozens of unsheltered people.
375:"Neighborhood Association and Nonprofit Make Handshake Deal With City to Fence Off Recently Cleared Homeless Camps"
553:"Hysteria Over North Seattle Encampment Ignores Larger Issue: The City Has No Plan for Most Unsheltered People"
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1101:"Former Gresham homeless outreach worker, internet famous for homeless stories, indicted on theft charges"
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145:, praised WHS for doing "more to address the problems at Denny Park than the city has done in years.".
133:'s inaugural One Seattle Day of Service but were not approved. They did participate in 2023 and 2024.
973:"Jason Rantz: Seattle reaching homeless breaking point – here's how city residents are taking action"
166:
69:
788:"I could have very well died': Johanna Paul speaks about being saved from violence in her own tent"
1053:"Formerly homeless Portlanders volunteer with organization to help others get off the streets"
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editorial praising "people who have contributed to making our region a better place in 2021."
43:
1127:"Homelessness pundit Kevin Dahlgren accused of theft, official misconduct at city of Gresham"
924:"In Plain Sight: Criticisms, questions raised about controversial nonprofit We Heart Seattle"
298:"Big hearts: There's room for all the citizen-led responses to Seattle's homelessness crisis"
123:
73:
52:
349:"Deschutes County sheriff hired Portland homelessness consultant, Kevin Dahlgren, in July"
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Seattle's actions; both described Suarez as unreceptive to concerns brought up in person.
475:"Community groups question city's response to clean up Denny Park as crime, chaos spike"
1152:"Former president of Seattle-based homeless outreach group indicted for identity theft"
269:
817:"'We Heart Seattle' volunteers criticized for trash-picking efforts at homeless camps"
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401:"Pearl District Neighborhood Association collaborates with ODOT on solution to camps"
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publicly distanced themselves from WHS; Lewis, who had previously met with WHS, told
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150:
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110:
In November 2021, Suarez reported that in a conference call with City Councilmember
711:"Man at odds with Ballard neighbors leaves neighborhood with help from non-profit"
949:
1079:"An Embattled Seattle Trash Pickup Nonprofit Parachutes Into the Pearl District"
898:"An Embattled Seattle Trash Pickup Nonprofit Parachutes Into the Pearl District"
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111:
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869:"Volunteer group keeps helping homeless people, despite the city's ask to stop"
613:"Volunteer Group That Removes Trash From Homeless Encampments Draws Criticism"
1027:"Homeless advocates in Seattle feud over approach in their outreach efforts"
843:"Dori: City of Seattle tells volunteer group to stop helping the homeless"
72:
neighborhood. Suarez described WHS's model as "daily intensive outreach".
736:"Ballard neighbors say 'lawnmower man' is back and causing more problems"
142:
426:"My Ballard: We Heart Seattle to host Carkeek Park cleanup on Saturday"
178:
39:
38:. Its founder and executive director is Andrea Suarez, a resident of
34:
in October 2020, is a volunteer organization responding to trash and
761:"Dori: Update to 'Lawn Mower' man, who terrorized Ballard neighbors"
637:
527:"Parents worry as homeless camp keeps growing behind Seattle school"
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that he does not condone private groups conducting trash cleanups.
685:"LISTEN: Andrea Suarez & Tracy Belaire from We Heart Seattle"
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In April 2022, WHS applied to participate in Seattle mayor
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501:"People living outside struggle to get on housing list"
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Volunteer organization known for public cleanup events
659:"Portland's Bybee Lakes Hope Center: A jail no more"
323:"Seattle neighbors take action to end homelessness"
263:Kevin Dahlgren, a homelessness services worker in
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1210:Homelessness organizations in the United States
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1018:
8:
80:, a homeless shelter in Portland, Oregon.
239:Learn how and when to remove this message
281:
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296:Hemmingsen, Jennifer (6 August 2021).
219:Please improve this section by adding
7:
734:Choe, Jonathan (February 23, 2022).
611:Archibald, Ashley (March 23, 2021).
141:Jason Rantz, writing nationally for
1099:Allison, Megan (October 31, 2023).
815:Choe, Jonathan (November 5, 2021).
1200:Homelessness in Washington (state)
525:Kostanich, Kara (April 26, 2021).
347:Kaminski, Anna (August 23, 2023).
51:, which performed similar work in
14:
1025:Choe, Jonathan (March 11, 2021).
841:Monson, Dori (November 5, 2021).
473:Kostanich, Kara (March 2, 2021).
399:Allison, Megan (8 October 2022).
1125:Sparling, Zane (November 2023).
867:Sun, Deedee (November 5, 2021).
499:Martin, Casey (April 10, 2021).
197:
1051:Best, Blair (August 30, 2022).
971:Rantz, Jason (March 22, 2021).
577:George, Samira (June 2, 2021).
551:Barnett, Erica (May 22, 2021).
447:Rantz, Jason (5 January 2021).
373:Peel, Sophie (20 August 2022).
1205:Organizations based in Seattle
922:Campbell, Sam (8 April 2024).
638:"Who We Are: We Heart Seattle"
1:
896:Peel, Sophie (May 25, 2022).
709:Choe, Jonathan (2021-11-29).
221:secondary or tertiary sources
1077:Peel, Sophie (25 May 2022).
1226:
106:Work with city governments
998:"The gifts of our region"
585:. No. June 2–8, 2021
579:"Making Bitter Lake home"
259:Former president indicted
28:We Heart Downtown Seattle
786:Coughlin-Bogue, Tobias.
32:I Heart Downtown Seattle
78:Bybee Lakes Hope Center
36:homelessness in Seattle
208:relies excessively on
617:South Seattle Emerald
92:South Seattle Emerald
942:"Key Communications"
167:Seattle City Council
30:and incorporated as
1158:. November 20, 2023
1156:KIRO 7 News Seattle
873:KIRO 7 News Seattle
327:KIRO 7 News Seattle
767:. October 19, 2022
1002:The Seattle Times
428:. 3 February 2021
329:. 11 January 2021
302:The Seattle Times
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90:In May 2021, the
49:We Heart Portland
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131:Bruce Harrell
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59:Outreach work
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1162:November 21,
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1004:. 2021-12-23
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950:the original
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928:My Northwest
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353:The Bulletin
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175:Andrew Lewis
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1110:November 2,
878:November 7,
852:November 5,
826:November 7,
797:16 December
792:Real Change
669:29 November
643:29 November
583:Real Change
458:25 February
432:29 November
384:24 November
358:November 2,
118:Dori Monson
112:Dan Strauss
83:Real Change
70:Bitter Lake
1194:Categories
1008:2021-12-24
720:2021-11-30
695:2021-11-30
333:2021-10-29
276:References
210:references
162:Mutual aid
1031:KOMO News
557:PubliCola
531:KOMO News
479:KOMO News
229:June 2024
179:KOMO News
137:Reactions
977:Fox News
307:7 August
169:members
143:Fox News
44:Belltown
907:May 26,
265:Gresham
124:Ballard
40:Seattle
1136:8 July
1084:7 July
956:9 July
589:5 June
562:22 May
189:Impact
1036:1 May
982:1 May
622:1 May
536:1 May
510:1 May
484:1 May
1164:2023
1138:2024
1112:2023
1105:KATU
1086:2024
1064:2022
1038:2021
984:2021
958:2024
909:2022
880:2021
854:2021
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821:KOMO
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740:KOMO
715:KOMO
671:2021
663:KOIN
645:2021
624:2021
591:2021
564:2021
538:2021
512:2021
486:2021
460:2024
453:KTTH
434:2021
412:2022
405:KATU
386:2022
360:2023
309:2021
173:and
120:Show
1057:KGW
689:KVI
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