Second Avenue Commons

Julia Pugar

What an exciting day at 2nd Avenue Commons! Local hair stylist Jamie Scafuri from Alchemy Dry Cut Lounge came with the respite crew to give haircuts for the people residing in the commons. We had total hair transformations – from cutting long locks, shaving off beards, and getting trims! Everyone loved watching Jamie in action and revealing the final look of the community members! Those who didn’t get haircuts opted in for getting their nails painted. Bridget painted someone Halloween nails, Kay painted some clear glitter nails, and Julia painted a multi color set. Because everyone was in a spooky mood with Halloween around the corner– Michael Jackson’s music was requested. A women started dancing and showed us her phenomenal moves! Bridget of course joined the fun and danced along side of her.

Hot Metal

Julia Pugar

500 Rummy was the game choice for this weeks respite! With the fall weather around the event was held indoors at Hot Metal Bridge. There was fresh fruit, coffee, cookies, and great conversation. From old friends, to new faces – we all sat around laughing about how one community member is the king of games! We are in awe every time he wins! We celebrated a local community members birthday with his favorite dish of chocolate chips cookies.

Second Avenue Commons

Julia Pugar

It’s always exciting being back at 2nd Avenue Commons! Art seems to be a very connecting and grounding practice for many who reside in the commons. One of the women from the community produced two paintings that went together – the shades of green, brown, yellow, and teal had everyone in the mood for a cool fall afternoon. Another member replicated a photo of Minnie and Mickey Mouse – we all stated how they could work as an animator for films/drawing cartoons!

Hot Metal

Julia Pugar

At Hot Metal Bridge, people come to play the games! Whether it’s bingo, 500 rummy, uno, or Jenga – the community is ready! A member of the community who’s been coming to the events for almost a year now continuously crushed everyone in bingo! We shared stories or past respites, our upcoming excitement for the holidays, and what other games would be fun for upcoming events. We also devoured the homemade cookies and brownies Julia and Bridget made.

Northside Park

Julia Pugar

It’s so great to be back in North Side Park! It was a beautiful day for some art work. Many folks from the community stopped by our event to chat about the weather, grab a snack, and paint some canvases. We had one member of the community offer us some incense to light so our area would smell like lavender – they told us why the carry and offer the sticks of incense to the community, they see it as a cleansing practice. We loved hearing and seeing familiar faces at the respite event.

Art and Conversation

Julia Pugar

Entering into 2nd Avenue Commons we were greeted by a handful of familiar smiling faces who were so excited to see us with our art supplies! We gathered around a few tables where we painted, ate brownies, and shared why art was so meaningful to our lives. One resident explained how with her medical condition art has become more difficult for her, but her love for art grounds her and makes her days more enriched. Later, a student ethnographer helped the women create a piece that they both collaborated on – the resident verbally designed the piece while the student painted and sketched. A few folks said they will travel to our next location for the upcoming respite because they need more art in their lives!

Respite in the Park

Julia Pugar

Every respite is different, we never know if people will gravitate towards artwork, games, or chatting over a cup of coffee and a homemade baked good! Setting up an event in Northside park allows the respite to integrate with nature. Friendly faces walking throughout the park, school aged children, and folks from the community make their way over to our tent to say hello and introduce themselves – leading to conversations around similar interests, events happening in Pittsburgh, or the shared loved of the warm weather. Being in the park allows for free movement, coming and going as people please. The events in the park have grown to be something the community has told us they look forward to as much as we do.

Springtime Cookout at Hot Metal

Dr. Robert McInerney

We had our last mobile thriving respite event until June. We cooked hot dogs and hamburgers (Vegan too) outside on the fire and played music. About 20 people came as we have begun to develop a following in all our locations. We watched as folks from diverse communities introduced themselves, rough sleepers stopped by to eat and chat, kids from different families met and played, and some dogs got to know each other too. My students were in tears discussing their new and ongoing relationships with folks, and how much they continue to love this experience. What a joyous time it was!

Painting and Baked Goods

Bridget McCarthy

We were back over by the clinic again, but it didn't feel as awkward/in the way as last time! I think it was a combination of things that helped with that. Since the weather was nice there weren't many people at the shelter, and we were able to get some bigger tables from downstairs. I think it works a lot better when there's fewer people since we can actually sit and chat with people and it is less chaotic.

It was still uncomfortable that we had to set up right next to people who were sleeping and the staff eventually asked them to move, but I think that just has to be part of it at this location. I could see that Justin was really trying to help us find a setup that worked best for us, the staff, and the residents. 

There are more and more people becoming regulars, which is really fun to experience! We had one person join us for painting who said it had been 20 years since they painted and this was the first time they had felt confident enough to try painting again after having a brain aneurysm. We also had some really nice interactions with the staff! Since it wasn't super busy, everyone was in a good mood and some of the staff enjoyed the baked goods with us. 

The rest of the time we just sat and played cards with a couple folks. Julia, Zana, and I agreed that Second Ave is becoming a special location to us. It's been really cool to see how well what we're doing seems to work at this spot. 

Rainy Day Movie Night

Bridget McCarthy

We had a very relaxed time today at the respite. It was tough to get the movie set up (as always haha), and I was worried we were going to have to switch to a backup plan, but Zana and I were able to figure it out. There was a lower turnout than last time–– I think about 10/12 people showed up initially and then we had around 8 by the end of the movie. 

We set up a semi-circle of chairs in front of the tv, but most people ended up sitting at the tables nearby. I still feel like there is less trust/openness here than at our other locations and I'm not sure what, if anything, we should do to improve that. The atmosphere was definitely a bit moody and disconnected, but just like last time it was pretty cold and rainy today, so that might have affected people's moods as well. 

It seemed like people enjoyed the movie! I was definitely crying through several parts. It was sort of hard to read how people were feeling about the movie/event, but I spoke to one guy named Ron who we've seen at Second Ave as well, and he said he liked it and was looking forward to seeing us next week. The movie ended at about 4:50, so we didn't have much time to talk to people afterward anyway. Overall I think it was good! Hopefully, we'll start to see some familiar faces and soon people will warm up to us a bit more. 

Saint Patrick’s Day at Second Avenue Commons

Bridget McCarthy

I brought brownies with green dinosaur sprinkles for St. Patrick's day, and Julia brought brownies and some homemade cookies. Once we got going, we had a couple of people who we remembered from last time. One guy who played jenga with me the first time, hung around for pretty much the whole time and was such a hoot to talk to. He called the four of us his "Angels" and had the table laughing constantly. Another fellow remembered us from last time and sang a couple of songs he had written himself. One of our regulars brought St. Patricks' day themed cookies and mini cupcakes and bead necklaces to share, which was so sweet! She also helped us serve some of the treats and had a good time helping out. Since there were fewer people, we had more time to slow down and have an easygoing vibe. We also didn't run out of anything, which I think is a first for this location. This was an excellent setup and there was a really fun and lighthearted group dynamic.

First Respite at the Park

Dr. Robert McInerney

Our first mobile thriving summer respite was wonderful!! I am so honored to be with these welcoming, kind, and thoughtful students. Lots of folks came by to talk with us, eat a bit, and paint! Some folks from Light of Life walked over, others were just walking by. A few young kids came to do art and eat, a mom with her child sat with us too. One fellow helped us pack up, said he had a great time, and planned to follow us to our next respite. My favorite part was when people from the community, who did not know each other, met at our respite, and enjoyed a conversation. A young woman came by with strawberries and offered everyone some. The Pittsburgh Park Conservancy staff were great and local businesses donated us food (and Common Place coffee donated us coffee!). We now have our own pop-up tent, foldable table and benches, and huge water/Gatorade dispenser. We’ll be back in a couple of weeks but our next stop is Hot Metal Bridge Faith Community.

Art Studio Outside

Dr. Robert McInerney

The Mobile Thriving Respite continues to grow. Yesterday, we did art studio outside; it was a beautiful day. We had lots of paint and canvases available, played some music, and had coffee and good food for all. One person came with their sweet dog (everyone petted her) and painted some flowers, an elderly fellow who worked for years at Heinz Field was there and talked for a long time with one of our students. A mom and her son came and enjoyed painting, and another person came and giggled a lot while she painted. One older fellow told us he used to be a Marine. He seemed happy to talk with us and tell us stories. I talked with him about old TV shows we watched when we were young. We also talked about werewolves!

A Fire in the Rain

Dr. Robert McInerney

We’re gaining some momentum, so to speak, with the mobile thriving respite. We’re learning the value of being resolute (not absolute!). It was cold and raining, quite miserable out, but we were able to start a fire and we set up some tents. One fellow came and sat with us, ate a sandwich, had some coffee, and talked with us about Tom Brady. His favorite song is The Gambler. We played it and sang together. A mom and her little boy came, and we talked about art projects we can do at upcoming respites. One fellow came, had a “delicious” hamburger, and encouraged us to create a web page. He said he'd follow us to our other respites around town. Another fellow came, about my age, and had a great time talking with us. He excitedly told us all kinds of stories, always noting the exact date and month! He’d exclaim “It was 1984” and then regale us. At one point, he told us that he invented homogenized milk! And so, we asked how that came about and talked about the homogenization process. The students were perfect. He thanked us for a good time, and said he’d come back again.

Music and pizza

Kelsey Long

This week’s event went great, we had a lot of folks come in!

412 got us food again, though they made it seem like we would have more sandwiches than we did, and we mostly only had snacks like carrots and hummus, so I ordered some pizza for everyone.

Everyone told me that they loved Dylan's set and one person even asked Dylan if he could record it on a cassette (which he did.) I saw that all of the students were social with folks. Everyone there seemed to make at least one or two new friends! I saw some new faces this time, and some of them said that they might be interested in future events. People are really excited for the karaoke next week, I made sure to write the address down for a bunch of people so that they would hopefully know where to go. Dallas seemed to take the idea of a scary movie as a challenge ("What movie are you gonna play that's gonna scare me!?")

Alyssa, the new PULSE person was great too. She sat down at a table with some folks and just hung out for the whole event.

Our summer regulars frequently ask about the students we had last semester and seem pretty bummed that they're not doing it again. Many have excitedly told me that they've seen some of them around Downtown and stopped and said hey. The students from last semester seem to really have left a great impression and are greatly missed!

Motown and Body Movement Therapy

Dr. Robert McInerney

The Mobile Thriving Respite has been wonderfully successful. I’d post pics but I’m waiting for permissions. At Motown Night, lots of people came (approx. 40), lots of smiles, tapping their feet, and “almost” dancing. The student ethnographers were impressive – they socialized and talked in-depth with folks as I saw many in long conversations, serious looking at times, laughing at times, and so on.

Yesterday we had body movement therapy. Again, a nice size group showed up. The students made sandwiches and we played music. Peyton lead the way with the BMT.

As Kelsey Long, the Director of the activities describes “Some of the people participated in the BMT, some people were unable to because of physical issues but did what they could sitting down, some got really into it with the group. All that participated seemed to have a great time with it, regardless. I spoke to some folks there, and everyone seemed to have a nice relaxing time. Conversations that I had with folks varied from tearful conversations about difficult situations that someone was going through, to our favorite moments from Seinfeld.”

Monday Night Movie

Rachel Stough

As soon as we started setting up, the men that were already there (there’s typically a handful that volunteer to help clean and put out mats before they officially open) were excited and helped us set up. One was helping us pick the best spot to show the film so everyone could see it. The other was moving mats out of the way for us and saying that whoever complained about us taking their regular spot would have to answer to him because he “really needed a movie in [his] life tonight”.

The whole vibe in the space was completely different from a typical Monday night. There was no fighting and it was VERY quiet. Most of the men were laying down and watching the movie. Some found chairs to sit in and watch. They were very excited once they realized what movie we were playing. Something about the nostalgia drew people together or at least captured their attention. I heard a few people quoting lines here and there to those around them. Several people said this was one of their favorite movies

A lot of the guys fell asleep before the movie finished, but it’s kind of nice to get to fall asleep to a film sometimes too.

Overall, it wasn’t perfect, but it had the effect I think we were looking for in that it changed the energy of the space, everyone seemed to enjoy it, and it gave people a chance to just be people.