If you are interested in joining our mailing list, please submit your email below.
I love you, and there’s nothing you can do about it. ~Joseph M. “Hayseed” Devers
Joe “Hayseed” Devers (born June 24, 1949) may have been another “typical homeless man” by most downtown Portlanders, but to the houseless community and their advocates, he was an asset. An original Occupier during Chapman and Lownsdale, he joined the City Hall Vigil of 2011-2013, a 24/7 vigil to address the city’s Sit-Lie and other unconstitutional ordinances that targeted the most vulnerable on the streets. He soon became the best of camaraderie for many of the other vigilantes there.
His service to the Vigil was humble — providing hot coffee and tea to whomever needed it; sweeping the sidewalks clean from debris left by others who pitch their sleeping bags every night. But as said by his friends, he became an important role as the Vigil’s peacekeeper, listener, and peer mediator, as he was awarded by the Willamette Week in their Best of Portland 2013 and interviewed by KBOO radio for his work.
In November 2013, Hayseed was admitted to the ER for a bad case of frostbite after a particularly cold winter night. There, doctors discovered something else, and Hayseed was diagnosed with advanced-stage lung cancer. During his stay at Portland VA Medical Center, he received constant visits and updates from family, friends, and Occupiers, receiving constant love, prayers, and support. He was around community continuously during his battle with cancer, and while he fought long and hard, he passed away on February 20, 2014.
On Friday, February 28, former vigilantes and friends came together and held a Memorial Service for Hayseed to honor his life and legacy, outside at City Hall. People remembered him as “kind,” “peaceful,” “lovely” and “personal.” An online tribute vigil is still running for Hayseed, where anyone can offer their words…
A memorial service for Hayseed near his hometown on the Oregon Coast is planned July 2014.