GREENFIELD — Coworkers and former residents of the county’s only homeless shelter for individuals are mourning the loss of Director Stephen Karpovich, who they described as a selfless and contemplative man, one who preferred to listen rather than talk.
Karpovich, 69, a husband and father, died July 22 of complications from injuries he incurred in a car accident in Leverett three weeks earlier.
The Amherst resident had been at the helm of Greenfield’s Wells Street shelter for 18 years.
Sitting around the shelter’s dining room table, several of his coworkers and former residents shared memories of their former leader Friday.
“I don’t think it’s over the top to say that he saved lives,” Clinical Case Manager Jack Tulloss said. “He was inspiring. I make no bones about that. He was an inspiring guy to be around. He made you want to do your best work.”
Program Manager Elizabeth Bienz noted that Karpovich was always calm even though his job called for difficult decisions every day.
“He had to make a lot of decisions, in the course of a day, that could potentially be life or death for people,” Bienz said. “About whether they’re going to have to leave the shelter because of an incident, or whether they’re going to be able to come in, double up on the couch, if he’s trying to make an exception for someone.”
Although these decisions were frequent, Bienz said Karpovich “never lost sight” of the impact they had on people’s lives.
Joseph Phillips is among those who took refuge at Wells Street during Karpovich’s tenure. For Phillips, who arrived at the shelter in 2017 after being released from the Franklin County House of Correction, Karpovich became a “rock” amid a period of uncertainty and despair.
“He knew everything about me,” Phillips said. “I was able to say things to him that I didn’t even speak with other people about.”
Many times, Karpovich stepped away from his office and gave shelter residents hands-on support. For example, after Phillips said he decided he wanted to create a garden out a collection of weeds and rubble next to the shelter, Karpovich threw his support — and his hands — into the project. With the shelter director’s help, Phillips transformed the neglected strip of dirt into a blossoming garden of herbs and flowers. Doing so inspired an interest in gardening for Phillips, leading him to a new job at a composting company.
“I believe Steve got me different opportunities because of him being here and supporting me,” Phillips said.
Around the table, Karpovich’s colleagues — case workers and counselors among them — all agreed the shelter director had a never-ending well of patience and support for his coworkers and clients.
“He was kind, and he was patient and he was very understanding,” Tulloss said. “When a lot of the rest of us were running out of sympathy and patience, he was kind of a voice that said, ‘No, no, let’s stay focused here.’”
Rose Facto, who is serving as the shelter’s acting director, recalled Karpovich’s remarkable patience, even when shelter residents were being challenging.
“I remember sitting in the office with him and there was a client just going off on him, swearing at him, and he’s just sitting there, nodding his head, and I’m biting my tongue,” Facto said.
Even amid the challenges of his work, with residents returning to the shelter many times over, Karpovich refused to give up on people, Tulloss said.
“There was no end to chances with Steve,” Tulloss said. “He always had this kind of baseline hope that if you try enough times, if you give a person enough breaks, the last one will be the one they’re looking for.”
Facto said the final time she saw Karpovich was on the evening of his accident, as he left the shelter to return home. Karpovich’s car collided with another vehicle on Long Plain Road July 2, the Greenfield Recorder reported, with the Leverett Fire Department being called to the scene at about 6:40 p.m. He was airlifted to Baystate Medical Center with serious injuries.
“Coming in here and being in his office is hard,” Facto said. “I still expect to see this tall man walk in.”
For the Wells Street community that Karpovich leaves behind, his sudden loss is difficult to believe.
“One day he’s here and it seems like the next day he’s not,” Tulloss said. “It was very jarring to know that one of our kingpins here, one of our leaders, has been taken from us.”
Reach Grace Bird at gbird@recorder.com or 413-772-0261, ext. 280.