A Grave Marker for a Homeless Man Bludgeoned to Death on the Bowery

Photo: Karlin Chan

It’s been nearly two years since the city was rocked by the fatal bludgeoning of homeless men on the Bowery while they slept. Of the five beaten by 24-year-old attacker Randy Santos, four ultimately died – Chuen Kwok, Anthony Manson, Florencio Moran, and Nazario Vasquez-Villegas.

Chuen Kwok was a vulnerable senior who, after the passing of his partner, fell on hard times. He started living on the streets of Chinatown and became a fixture outside the Chase bank at Doyers Street and the Bowery, where locals would occasionally donate a dollar and some dinner.

Mr. Kwok (“Uncle Kwok”) had no family, so activist Karlin Chan volunteered to sign the paperwork necessary to claim his remains. The Celestial Love Foundation covered funeral expenses, except the cost of a grave marker, for which his organization, Chinatown Freemasons Athletic Club, organized a GoFundMe fundraiser in September 2020.

The results of that drive are now visible. Nine months after the funds were collected, a marker was finally unveiled this week.

“He shouldn’t be laid to rest in an unmarked grave,” Chan told us in an email alongside the above photo. “Thanks to all who donated!”