Homeless Memorial Vigil Honors Lives Lost, Calls for Compassion and Change

Staff report

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — October 9, 2025 — Community members gathered on the Monroe County Courthouse lawn Thursday night for the annual Homeless Memorial Vigil, standing together in remembrance of those who died this year after experiencing homelessness in Bloomington.

The event, hosted by Beacon, Inc., featured local leaders and faith representatives who spoke about dignity, remembrance, and the urgent need to address the root causes of homelessness.

Beacon Executive Director Forrest Gilmore opened the ceremony, describing the vigil as both a memorial and a protest. “It’s our chance to say to the world and to the people who loved them that your lives matter,” Gilmore said. “We often demonize and marginalize people who are struggling, but there needs to be another way. We can do better, and we will do better.”

County Council Member Trent Deckard spoke about the importance of dignity, noting that even as technology makes it easier to connect, society has grown more disconnected and less compassionate. “Tonight is a contrast to that,” Deckard said. “It starts with dignity and the commonality that connects us, and we have to ask ourselves how we extend that beyond one night.”

Beacon Board Member Michelle Bloom, who has personally experienced homelessness, shared an emotional reflection. “Every person who has experienced homelessness has a story,” she said. “They’re more than a statistic. They are human beings with lives, connections, and people who love them.”

City Council Member Sydney Zulich read a poem before challenging attendees to treat love as action. “Love is a promise to fix the gaps in the system that have allowed people to slip through the cracks,” she said. “We can’t love anyone back to life, but we can honor their legacy by eliminating the factors that led to their deaths.”

Pastor Adrianne Meier of St. Thomas Lutheran Church led a closing prayer, asking for peace, justice, and protection for all who struggle to find shelter. “Let us pray for those whose homelessness has been met with ignorance, neglect, and violence,” she said. “And for those who have died unsheltered, that their memory calls us to ensure that all are housed, clothed, safe, and loved.”

Following the speeches, participants read the names of more than 20 individuals who died over the past year and planted signs bearing their names in the courthouse lawn. Candles were lit as the sun set, and the crowd held a moment of silence before ending in song.

The annual vigil, held for more than two decades, is part of a national movement to remember people who have died while homeless and to call attention to ongoing struggles for housing, dignity, and justice in Monroe County.

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