“Loneliness is the Leprosy of the West” | The woman behind the story of Wayside’s uncollected ashes Stories From The Wayside

On this week’s episode of Stories from the Wayside, Jon speaks with someone who inspires and challenges many with  her intellectual curiosity, her honesty and her rare ability to tell complex, crazy and compelling human stories. She’s always been drawn to stories of vulnerability, and to people who live on the edges. 

A few years ago, Jon wrote to his Inner Circle about the urns I have sitting in my office – cremated ashes of people who have died on our streets, sitting unclaimed, contested, or forgotten.

The woman you’re going to hear from today took it upon herself to learn a little about the lives of three of them.

Read the story here: https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2021/oct/24/the-unclaimed-the-ashes-left-waiting-in-sydneys-wayside-chapel 

As a journalist, she’s explored the lives of the famous and the notorious, and widely covered social justice issues, but it’s her research and writing on loneliness that we unpack today– as it’s been a touchstone for our strategic work at Wayside. 

If you’d like to hear more stories from the wayside, be sure to Subscribe to our Inner Circle: https://www.waysidechapel.org.au/inner-circle/ 

Stories by the Wayside has been made in conjunction with MIK Made.