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Homeless Veteran Who Charmed Park Slope Memorialized on Seventh Avenue

 Brian Sheppard created a Seventh Avenue memorial for the late Derrick McGlashen, a homeless Vitenam War veteran who befriended dozens in Park Slope.
Brian Sheppard created a Seventh Avenue memorial for the late Derrick McGlashen, a homeless Vitenam War veteran who befriended dozens in Park Slope.
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Caroline Spivack

PARK SLOPE — Locals have erected a makeshift memorial to a homeless veteran who befriended many people in the neighborhood and was well known for telling neighborhood tykes: "Don't forget to read a book."

Derrick McGlashen, 69, had been living in the neighborhood for decades before he died last week of cancer, according to Seton Hall University law professor Brian Sheppard, who is raising funds to install a permanent Seventh Avenue plaque to commemorate the Vietnam War veteran.

Sheppard said he struck up a friendship with McGlashen in 2010, greeting him regularly on the corner of Seventh Avenue and Carroll Street in front of the Key Food grocery store where he would rattle a cup for change. When McGlashen died of stage four lung cancer last week, Sheppard wanted to pay homage to the man who had become a fixture in the community. 

 The tribute has amassed flowers, a dream catcher, and drawings for local kids.
The tribute has amassed flowers, a dream catcher, and drawings for local kids.
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Caroline Spivack

"Derrick was basically a neighborhood legend in a way," said Sheppard. "He would be perched in front of Key Food, but what made Derrick particularly special was just how gregarious he was and just how well known he was — I think it would disarm people that might be uncomfortable with approaching someone who was homeless." 

On Monday, Sheppard posted a laminated sketch of McGlashen at the corner — which has since amassed bouquets of flowers, a dream catcher, and drawings from kids he befriended — along with his email for those interested in contributing to a plaque. 

In a mere four days, more than a dozen people have contacted Sheppard with interest and anecdotes about the charismatic drifter. The outpouring came as a shock, said Sheppard. 

"What I think is so interesting about what happened since he died is I always felt like I’m lucky to be his friend — thinking in the back of my mind, 'There couldn't be that many people,'" said Sheppard. "But this has shown me that he was friends with tons of people and that's been great. He really was the source of positivity for that corner." 

Sheppard, who visited McGlashen in Brooklyn Methodist Hospital before he passed away, said he knew some things about his friend's personal life but didn't know how he ended up on the streets. Locals said he'd been in the neighborhood for decades and didn't sleep on the streets but rather hopped in and out of shelters, cheap rooms, or the YMCA.

McGlashen gained a reputation for being great with kids, said Becky Voorwinde who regularly visited him with her 5-year-old, Miriam.

"We would always say 'hi' in the street and he would say 'hi Princess,' or 'hi Sweetie' and we just naturally developed a relationship with him," said Voorwinde, who McGlashen even gave $10 to for a gift on Miriam's birthday. "He took a real interest in her and was very encouraging of her — always wanting to know what she was learning in school."

Keeping McGlashen's memory alive with a memorial goes beyond him and should serve as a reminder to helping the less fortunate, added Voorwinde.

"Even in a neighborhood that is primarily gentrified like Park Slope there is still need all around us and this community is connected to those who don't have the same luck," she said, hoping this will be a springboard for efforts to help the area's homeless. "He also cared, so I think giving him a moment of being cared for and remembering him is powerful."

Sheppard is working to get those involved on the same page before moving forward with the memorial plaque, but hopes the temporary tribute will pave the way for a permanent​ installation.

It's an important shrine to a man who probably didn't realize his impact on the community, said another McGlashen fan. 

"Sometimes he would call out 'I love you' as you were leaving and what really comes to mind is that we loved him too," said Mary McLoughlin, who McGlashen called one of his "Charlie's Angels." "I bet you he never thought how much the people loved and admired him here. It's important that we remember him."