Nationwide — Moneque Cook, an African American woman from Mount Clemens, Michigan, was found unresponsive in freezing weather behind a dumpster and later died at a nearby hospital. Authorities are investigating her death as local outreach workers say they had helped her just days earlier.
Police discovered the 53-year-old barefoot early Thursday morning and rushed her to the hospital, where doctors pronounced her dead. The Macomb County Sheriff’s Office said the circumstances surrounding her death remain under investigation.
Cook was well known to volunteers with Motor City Mitten Mission, a nonprofit that supports unhoused people with food, blankets, bus passes, and shelter options. Outreach workers had interacted with her regularly, and last saw her about a week before her death, according to WXYZ.
“Monique never gave us any problems or issues and was just very grateful and very appreciative for the food that we gave and the blankets that we provide and the bus passes that we provided,” said Gail Marlow, executive director of Motor City Mitten Mission.
Marlow said Cook often stayed at a nearby park close to where she was found. Her death deeply affected outreach workers who spend each day searching across Macomb, Oakland, and Wayne counties for people sleeping outdoors, in cars, or in abandoned buildings, especially during extreme cold.
With limited funding and staff, Marlow said the need continues to grow. “Homelessness and food and housing insecurity is a real issue and that all of us are only one step away from it,” she said.
Mount Clemens City Commissioner Spencer Calhoun said he is leading a newly formed task force focused on addressing homelessness in the city. Macomb County Health and Community Services also released a statement expressing condolences and confirming the case remains under review by the Medical Examiner’s Office.
County officials said they work year-round with community partners to connect people experiencing homelessness with shelter, warming centers, and support services. They encouraged anyone in need, or anyone concerned about a vulnerable person, to reach out for help.