Remembering Frenchie

Hello. It has been, what. Almost a year? Still have a roof over my head. That’s more than I can say for a lot of folks, and I am both grateful and saddened by some recent news. A recent comment has alerted me to the fact that Frenchie has died. The person who posted a comment is looking for information about how and why he died, among other news. Please comment here if you know anything about Frenchie. What is his real name? Anybody know?

Here’s what I know. According to Frenchie, whom I slept across from back when I was staying at the Immanuel Baptist shelter on Grand Avenue in the Fair Haven district of New Haven, he was a Green Beret in Viet Nam. He won a few medals, two of them Medals of Honor, I believe. Those of you who don’t know about military honors, a Medal of Honor is a rare thing to get. Is it true? Can anybody corroborate that?

If Frenchie really has died, which I hope he has not (the rumor mill is shaky at best), I too am saddened. I didn’t know him well. He was about 6′ 2″, I think, and about 180 pounds. I bet he was heavier in his glory days. He had a son, about my age. The son lives in California as a student at the University of Southern California (USC). Frenchie spoke extremely proudly of his son, who is doing well, according to Frenchie. The son has a girlfriend, or perhaps not anymore.

Frenchie said he used to be a multi-millionaire and that his ex-wife took it all, somehow. I don’t know how he won his millions. Real estate, was it? He went from riches to rags in a New York minute. He told me a story of how he was sleeping under a bridge once, or perhaps it was in a junk yard, and some cops with dogs came and woke him up and threw him in jail.

These are just the foggy facts that I know. He enjoyed laughing and joking, and had lots of friends in the homeless community. His French accent was still apparent, and he seemed to wear it like a badge of honor. He had a very familiar way with the shelter. I don’t know how long he had been staying there. Six months? Three years, ten? I don’t know.

I hope this information helps anybody who wants to mourn for Frenchie, or who just wants to get to know a piece of hidden New Haven.