Sergeant helps ‘queen bee’ transient from park bench to apartment

Despite the assistance of three social workers, two advocates and several other Good Samaritans throughout her years on the street, it turns out that all Mary Sullivan needed was the compassion and tenacity of a local police sergeant.

While Costa Mesa Sgt. Vic Bakkila can now joke around with Mary in her new downtown apartment, her life wasn’t always so lighthearted. In fact, Bakkila first met the charming British senior last year, when his job was addressing the growing number of transients congregating in city parks.

Though the department’s efforts in Wilson Park were largely successful, officers were frustrated that their efforts resulted in only temporary dents in the problem at Lions Park.

After some collective head-scratching, Bakkila said it became clear that park’s appeal involved an elderly “queen bee” whose “magnetic personality” kept transients coming back to look after her.

“She was older, had a walker, and the other transients all took care of her,” he said, adding one man even kept Mary dry with a piece of cardboard during rainfalls. “I studied the problem and was like, OK, Mary is the key. If we get Mary out of the park, then the rest of them will probably fade off.”

Bakkila first approached the problem with a cop’s mindset, working with the Lighthouse Church to help Mary get in touch with Adult Protective Services and ultimately dispersing her followers in the homeless community.

When eight months of that approach failed, Mary’s struggles became personal: Bakkila started making phone calls on her behalf to Social Security offices, local businesses, and other services to unilaterally help Mary get on her feet.

Eventually, it became clear that Bakkila wasn’t getting Mary off the street to solve the city’s homeless problem — instead, he was pushing to save an elderly woman he adored.

“A lot of social workers have 100 people on their rolls,” he said. “I give them a lot of credit, but in my position, I was able to just focus on Mary and get her a lot of help.”

With his help, Mary’s life changed drastically — within months, she was sporting a top-of-the line walker, collecting Social Security, living in low-income housing, and wearing bifocal glasses that were far more effective than her over-the-counter pair.

Eye Styles Manager Mike Haigh, who charged Mary for only her frames and lenses, said his heart quickly went out to the odd couple that strolled into his store one afternoon.

“We saw the police car pull in and were like, ‘What happened?’” he said. “But, when he told me the story about how he rescued her on a park bench, how she had all these benefits coming to her…I knew that [owner] Robert Glass would be OK with charging her that.”

While Bakkila continues to look for a local business that could help her find a new pair of dentures, Mary is so visibly overwhelmed by Bakkila’s generosity that her toothless grin is hard to notice.

“[Vic] is my lifesaver,” she said, her soft British accent quivering with emotion. “I could absolutely cry because he has done so much for me …I love him so very much.”

Bakkila will receive the mayor’s award during Tuesday’s City Council meeting for his efforts, though it’s probably the last thing on his mind — he will continue to visit Mary about four times a week during his patrols, just to make sure everything is all right.

“I’ve learned a hell of a lot, believe me,” Mary says. “I hope people read [this] and realize that people can be very, very dear.”

CHRIS CAESAR may be reached at (714) 966-4626 or at chris.caesar@latimes.com.