Photo of homeless man changing single mom's tire warms hearts: 'Kindness matters'
A homeless man was photographed changing a single mom’s flat tire and his sweet favor is getting recognition online.
On September 23, Anna Davidson, the owner of Jessie Jean’s Historic 25th cafe in Ogden, Utah, posted a Facebook photo her husband snapped from their apartment above the establishment they have run for 20 years. The image has received more than 2,000 reactions.
“Looked out the window to see this happening. This is Chuck...he's homeless and works his a** off helping every day in the cafe. This is ‘one of those people’ that get labeled. Ya know the ones everyone wants outta sight, outta mind.. I didn't see anyone else out helping this young lady, just Chuck...the homeless guy...thank you Chuck.” She wrote the hashtags #findthekind and #kindnessmatters.”
Charles Logan, a.k.a., Chuck is a local homeless man who was formerly incarcerated, and who visits the restaurant every day with his wife Crystal. Chuck has been a staple at the establishment since April when the couple caught word of Jessie Jean’s “Pay It Forward” meals, a program Davidson launched during the government shut-down in December.
“We have about 5,000 government workers living in Ogden so when they couldn’t work, it was traumatic,” Davidson tells Yahoo Lifestyle. “We figured, ‘If we’re going to lose our business, we may as well help people on our way out.” The owners advertised a special for $2 coffee and beignets and with local donations, continued the program, which attracted some homeless people.
Davidson says not everyone in her community has supported her invitation to the homeless community. “I was like, ‘f*** that,’” she tells Yahoo Lifestyle. She continued the program seven days a week, inspired to break stereotypes about people in need. Customers have the option of adding a “Pay it forward” meal on their bills, to be served the following day.
“I felt like the universe was telling me to do this,” says Davidson.
In exchange for his help around the restaurant — sweeping, sanitizing, and doing the dishes — Chuck receives meals. “He’s a safety net around here,” says Davidson. Her goal for Chuck is that he lands housing and a full-time job. She also hopes to stop the stigmatization of homeless people.
Shuree Michelle, the recipient of Chuck’s gesture, says when her tire blew in the middle of road, no one stopped to assist her. “Out comes this guy and he asked if I had a spare tire and a jack,” she tells Yahoo Lifestyle. “He didn’t hesitate to help — it was very sweet.” Shuree says she gave him a $10 for his troubles.
Chuck says he was “supposed” to help that day, telling Yahoo Lifestyle, “Treat people as they would like to be treated, with respect.”
Read more from Yahoo Lifestyle:
High school football player stops in his tracks to honor national anthem in viral image
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