A Unique Friendship Frames a Unique DST Success Story
I wholeheartedly think that DST serves a purpose. If you get one success story out of however many, then you’re doing ok.
Trudy wears paint-spattered dungarees and a patchwork “hippie” blouse she sewed herself many years ago. She greets us holding a framed portrait of Watergate villain John Ehrlichman (but, more on that later.) Sylvia wears her DST graduate t-shirt and a serious floppy sun hat– the kind crossing guards wear because she is one. The patio garden where we chat is an ideal place to learn about the friendship between Trudy Myrrh Reagan and Sylvia Martin. The thriving plants are Sylvia’s work and the colorfully painted walls and décor are Trudy’s. A poster tacked to the garden wall reads, “How to Build Community.”
Trudy and Sylvia met in 2015 at the Palo Alto Quaker Meeting House, which was hosting “Hotel de Zink,” a LifeMoves Shelter Program. The two women formed a close bond based on mutual respect and support that has endured. Trudy offered Sylvia a safe place to live in exchange for nominal rent and domestic assistance. Sylvia was eager to leave her living situation and accepted the offer. They signed a contract and the whole agreement was overseen by the Quaker Meeting‘s Clerk in case any kind of renegotiation was required in the future. Having Sylvia at her home to do the grocery shopping and other tasks empowers Trudy to be more independent in her house where she has been living and making art since 1963. This was especially true during COVID lockdown when Sylvia was more capable of running needful errands. “I feel blessed,” says Trudy about having Sylvia around and for the cell phone hanging from her neck that can connect the two at a moment’s notice in case of emergency.
This arrangement provided Sylvia an opportunity to flex her own strong sense of independence. She bought a minivan that she converted into a stealth van, which is to say a customized, self-contained, living space on wheels, though you would never know it by looking at it. That’s the stealth part. “Most people would not be happy living out of a van parked in a driveway,” declares Sylvia, “but for me, it’s perfect.” The van is a world apart, a space of Sylvia’s own, even as it is parked in front of Trudy’s house. It’s a testament to the minimalist lifestyle that she espouses and her belief in the value of “experiences, not stuff.”
ART FOR A CAUSE
Trudy’s house is full of art. By sheer coincidence, she asked Sylvia where she might donate some of it, so Sylvia called Chief Programs Officer Chris Richardson to see if DST could use some art. The timing could not have been better because DST was looking for auction item donations for Fall Fest 2022. Trudy’s art has a political edge sharpened by Quaker ideals of social justice. She studied art at Stanford University along with some economics courses, which gave her an informed take on economic inequality. Today, she’s a member of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom and the The Raging Grannies. Her perspective on justice shines through in a diptych called “Inequality 1936 – 2016.” Each painting is characterized by starkly divided panels: in the lower portions, workers toil in the fields in one and a poultry processing plant in the other. All the workers are ominous dark silhouettes, anonymous black units of labor. The top panels provide a mouse’s-eye view of the ritzy dancing shoes of men and women frozen in mid tango. The disembodied dancing feet juxtaposed with the featureless workers below depict a sharp critique of exploitation with a Barbara Ehrenreich + cha-cha-cha vibe.
“1936-Banana Republics” and “2016-Wall Street” by Trudy Myrrh Reagan
In the 70’s, the artist painted portraits of the central figures of the Watergate Scandal. She rendered her subjects from the political drama unfolding on TV. The proceedings were broadcast in the morning, and again in the evening when she drew them. This is no small feat when you remember that in those days, the pause button had yet to be invented. Plus, she had a black and white set, so she imagined each portrait’s color palette according to each personality. Triggered perhaps by recent (ahem) high-stakes political hearings, a solo exhibit of all of Trudy’s 16 Watergate pieces will be held November 1 to February 1 at the Midpen Media Center.
STEPPING STONES AND ROCKS
“I utilized the Downtown Streets Team as a stepping stone that got me back my dignity, got me back my confidence.” Sylvia joined DST because she “was looking to get a life.” But she had trust issues, and trauma, and not a lot of spare time. Nevertheless, she attended over 20 Weekly Success Meetings without joining a Team until finally DST asked what it would take to get her to sign on. She offered two availability slots and sure enough, DST had an assignment for her. That was the beginning of a five-year experience with DST. By the time she graduated, Sylvia had assumed the role of Team Lead for the Palo Alto Downtown Food Closet and the Gamble Garden Team. “The core principles of DST are right on,” she explains, especially the way DST’s Flagship Program encourages employment fundamentals like showing up on time. DST helped me get this job!” She flashes her five-year anniversary pin as a school crossing guard.
Sylvia thinks of DST as a self-help program. You help yourself. What do you need from us to help you help yourself? Just show up on time. Come on, how hard is that? “I wholeheartedly think,” she continues, “that DST serves a purpose. If you get one success story out of however many, then you’re doing ok.” She talks openly about her mental health: trauma, depression, and anxiety. Moreover, she is committed to the work of addressing it. She took classes, sought out natural and holistic remedies, meditates, and continues doing the work.
There is something indestructible at Sylvia’s core. It makes perfect sense that she takes joy in painting rocks as part of a community mindfulness effort. You’ve probably seen stones of this kind: smooth river rocks painted with cheerful icons or uplifting messages. When you encounter them on a walk around the neighborhood, you ask yourself, who makes these little artworks? Well, Sylvia does as part of her belief in the Kindness Rocks Project, and she gifted us some when our chat was over. Like the rocks she paints, Sylvia inspires.
The friendship between Sylvia and Trudy is an example of “How to Build Community.” It also seems to exemplify something we strongly believe at DST, that is every person’s path towards stability is unique.
Trudy’s art will be available for auction at DST’s Fall Fest on November 10th. Be part of this story, and bid on one of her pieces! More information here.