Bob Santos is a long-time community activist and public service official in Seattle. As the Northwest Representative for HUD during the Clinton administration,, he worked enthusiastically with homeless organizing groups, and among other things opened the first homeless shelter in a Federal building. He left HUD with the change in administration, but is still working to start new housing projects. The members of WHEEL homeless women’s organization are not the only ones to call him “Uncle Bob”. He is one of the few community leaders trusted by both activists and elected officials.

At the party for Uncle Bob’s leave-taking fom HUD, a very large room was packed. There was a wall full of panels displaying his accomplishments, the housing he’d seen built. There was a lot of laughter, a lot of tears.

I wrote this poem for that occasion, as WHEEL‘s gift to Uncle Bob. Continue reading →