A 25-year-old man has been charged with manslaughter and granted interim name suppression preventing him from being named until he appears in the High Court at Whangārei next January.
Carol Peters, who supported the establishment of a day centre called Open Arms catering for homeless and those in crisis, said the centre had contacted police and offered to help if no family members could be found.
Open Arms was a place where people could connect with different services for housing and healthcare.
"We are there for people and we are family for people who may not have any for some reason," Peters said.
Meanwhile, a place where Eddie was know to sleep rough for the last six months was set on fire about 4pm on Tuesday.
Whangārei firefighters were called to a small shed next to the scoreboard at Jubilee Park where a mattress had been set on fire.
Yesterdaymorning the charred mattress remained in the corner.
A message written above the door read: "R.I.P Ed love you mate Anna x".
A friend who had gone to the shed yesterday morning said he had known Eddie for about six months and during that time he had slept in the shed with his dog, Sky.
"I put money in his hat because I felt sorry for his dog. After that I just started talking to him and used to hang out with him a bit here at the shed," the man said.
Another who got to know Eddie was Garrett Vincent.
"I knew Eddie in passing as I live next to where he was sleeping. I will say he was a kind soul with lots of words of wisdom and was an intelligent man. He used to call me sir every time he spoke to me. He used to look out for my car to make sure it was safe at night and one time scared off thieves who were trying to break into my car at 1am.''
A collection of bunches of flowers near the spot where Eddie was allegedly assaulted continued to grow along with gifts and notes. A large card was also being signed, with people leaving messages of support.
"To your family, your community cares," wrote one person.
