A Tribute to Wesley Charles Green

By guest writer, Mindy Fitzgerald, shared with the permission of Wesley’s family

I wanted to share a tribute about my friend Wesley Green. He had his mailbox at the food bank and would visit the food bank on and off through the years. He loved the warm food from the Kindness Café.

I’m sharing this post to honor the life of my friend, and one of our Magnolia neighbors – Wesley Charles Green. Wesley was born October 4, 1976, in Edina, Minnesota and passed away on December 21, 2022. He was laid to rest in Chicago, next to his mother. He was 46.

Wesley Charles Green, October 4, 1976 - December 21, 2022

I know many folks in the area knew or knew of Wes – he was unhoused for many years and would be out and about in the neighborhood. I met him this past August while walking my dog and we became good friends. Wesley was a lover of life and people. He liked to take his shoes off outside to get grounded. And it didn’t really matter where we were. He loved books. And he was never without at least one (or 10). He collected National Geographic and loved to show them off.

He loved music, playing the Fender acoustic and his harmonica. He loved basketball. He loved writing and button-down shirts. He loved Indian food, Kombucha, milk and warm soup with oyster crackers. He loved “hashing it out” with just about anyone. He loved his tools and his beloved rake. He loved his good buddy Martin (Martino as he would say) and working with him, learning from him, and just talking when he needed a kind friend. And if you know Wes, there was a lot of listening. He was a philosopher, a genius (really) and so articulate. At times he was infuriating and exhausting. He was also kind, gentle and loving. He gave the best hugs, fist pumps and hip checks. He was so handsome. He was funny, charming and people were drawn to him. He lost things all the time.

He spoke often of his love for his mother (his best friend and supporter he would say) and his entire family (in Minnesota, New York, and Chicago). He shared many happy memories and I know he missed and loved them - and they loved him very much. He brought joy to my life and made it richer in so many ways. He reminded me that we’re all just human. We all have a story and life is never a straight line. Some take more twists and turns than others, but the important thing is to keep trying. And it’s okay to ask for help.

There weren’t many days I didn’t speak to him or see him over the past five months. Step by step, we were on a positive path to a better life for him, he called me the master of lists. What’s the next thing he would say. He was proud of his progress. He was complicated and broken in many ways, but he was in there. The real Wes, I would tell him, I see you.

We lost him this past month, on 12/21/22. My heart is broken. But I know he is finally free, flying high beyond the stars, with his mother, and his shoes off, feeling more grounded than ever. You can rest now, buddy. I love you and I will miss you.