Homelessness is something that plagues almost every city in every country, in the whole world. The homeless are often forgotten about and stereotyped as lazy. If we see someone on the street, it’s easy just to pass them assuming that either someone else will see them and help them or, we assume the worst and think if they are given money they will use it unwisely. Recently, a group of London roofers experienced something completely different from the typical stereotype.
The Empire Roofing company started a job in London and noticed a homeless man living on a bench in a park near the house they were working on. What they could have done was just ignore the man and continue with their work as usual. However, they were sympathetic towards him and gave him a cup of tea. His name was John. John was so thankful that he offered to work in exchange for the cup of tea. The roofers agreed and asked him to come back the next morning.
In a viral Facebook post that has shared thousands of times, JayJay Murray describes his experience with John. He said that the following day John, the homeless man, was the first one on the site and worked tirelessly the whole morning without stopping, immediately destroying the typical stereotype of a homeless person.
The roofing team came to the decision that they wanted to help John. That afternoon the roofers took him to lunch at Burger King and offered him some cash. He was incredibly grateful and said that he only needed about $17 to get through the week. The Roofers had something better in mind. They had managed to pull together about $73 of their own money to help John out. He was so grateful he even asked when he could come back and help again.
Murray’s last sentiment for John was to say that he hopes the best for him, stating that “nobody willing to work should be homeless.” The roofing company stated that several people came forward and offered to give John a home after reading Murray’s post. Hertfordshire Roofing is the parent company of Empire, and they gave a statement saying they couldn’t believe how far the news about this kind deed has traveled and that they are so proud of the Empire team. If it weren’t for those roofers, we wouldn’t have this story. They could have easily ignored John and went on their way. Instead, they potentially changed his life.
This story gives hope for the kindness of people but also changes our image of homeless people. Maybe if given the opportunity to work, more of them would! Hopefully, John was able to land on his feet after this story was released, or in the least bit be able to work a few more days on the roofing site. The Empire roofing team should be proud of their actions, and this teaches us all step out of our comfort zones every once in a while.
Please Share With Your Friends and Family!
Source: Evening Telegraph
Connect with us