Park renamed for hero of International District

SEATTLE — The store her grandfather opened in 1911 is now in the hands of Constance Magorty.

The legacy of her brother, Donnie Chin, is too.

"Running the store is one of the things we do to keep things going for him," Magorty said Friday.

Chin would work at the store, except when he had to close it suddenly to help a neighbor.

He was the driving force behind the International District Emergency Center.

People would call Chin instead of 911.

"He would check in on everybody every day," Magorty said.

Last July, in the middle of the night, Chin was shot dead, caught in crossfire between two groups.

His murder remains unsolved, something Mayor Ed Murray acknowledged Friday when he signed a proclamation renaming a children's park in the Chinatown-International District for Donnie Chin.

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"We are doing everything in the power of the city to try to bring those who killed Donnie to justice," Murray told the crowd.

Volunteers still run the emergency center, but it is a struggle to keep up Chin's legacy.

"He was literally 24/7 every day and no one can do that. Even with all of us together, we still can't do that, it's not possible," Magorty said.

Since his death, people have also noticed a difference about the streets Donnie Chin used to walk.

They don't seem quite as clean, or as safe.

Neighbors say the people who now camp on the sidewalk would have been moved along by Donnie.

"Now it’s different without him. You can feel it in the neighborhood. You don't feel that safety you used to feel down here. It's different for everybody," Magorty said.

Last year, Murray set up a task force to examine safety in the neighborhood.

Murray's spokesman said the task force is finalizing its recommendations.

Cox Media Group