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But It was 33 years earlier that I first connected with the artist.

When I moved to Trenton in the mid1970s, I spotted Malloy drawing on the street and began asking questions about him.

It was my landlady who told me that he was the painter of Trenton — and that he had done the painting of our house — and also a neighbor. His home and studio were around the corner.

As I started getting active in the Trenton art scene, Malloy and I began to communicate more.

And soon we became friends and were active in developing downtown projects, including the establishment of the Trenton Artists Workshop Association (TAWA) and the Original Trenton Coffeehouse series of events — which include exhibitions and talks by Malloy.

We also would visit each other or attend art shows together. He and Dorothy were also at my wedding.

Although I moved from the city for some time, Malloy and I maintained that friendship and easily resumed conversations after not seeing one another for some time — our interest in Trenton and art kept us in connection.

Then a few years before he died, the octogenarian widower moved to the Pellettieri Homes in Trenton, where he continued to create art.

When I began visiting him there, it was clear that his body and energy were diminishing. But his mind still hummed with art and history, and we would talk about the founding of TAWA and the creation of the Trenton City Museum. However, he told me that he was sad that his mobility problems were preventing him from doing the thing he loved — making art on the street.

That changed during my next visit.

It was an early fall day with a cool blue sky and jeweled leaf trees when I bundled him up, put him in his wheelchair, and rolled him out to my car.

Within minutes, he was sitting in his chair on Jackson Street in the Mill Hill section of Trenton and back to being the person he was destined to be — the guy on the street who was drawing the city he loved.

Hours later, when I wheeled him back into his apartment, he smiled and said, “That was the best day I have had in years.”

It was also the last of such days.

A short time later he fell, broke bones, and after being sent to rehab was sent to a nursing home outside of the city.

I made several visits and noticed that although he wasn’t painting or drawing, he tapped into another love, singing whenever he could.

Then one day, someone called to tell me that Malloy was in the hospital.

When my son, who had developed his own friendship with Malloy, and I showed up to see him, he smiled, asked a few questions, and then said, “I’m tired. Do you mind if I go upstairs and go to bed?”

I took his hand and said, “Sure.” He nodded and fell asleep.

And while that was the last time I saw him (he died soon after), I feel like he’s still around.

As Charisa A. Smith notes in that above mentioned book on Malloy, “There is a little of Tom Malloy’s life story within us all. As Tom tried multiple paths on life’s course, so should the readers of his sto- ry. Tom’s constant faith endured multiple struggles and invites us to keep chasing the belief that everything happens for a reason. Tom’s courage to pursue professional painting after the age of fifty can especially inspire everyone to keep their dreams alive, no matter how impossible it may seem.”

As for me, I still see him on the street, but now he’s joined by a new generation of artists who are loving the city by making paintings, murals, and photographs.

And then there is his work that will be singing in the exhibition “Tom Malloy — Trenton’s Artist Laureate” at the Trenton Free Public Library, 120 Academy Street. On view August 2 through September 23, Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., Friday and Saturday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Free. Birthday reception Wednesday, August 23, 5 to 7 p.m. 609-3927188 or www.trentonlib.org.