It pays to be honest in a world where there is so much mistrust.
This homeless man’s honesty made it to the news when he returned a huge amount of money to its rightful owner. Little did he know that his one small act of honesty can create a ripple that would change his life (and others, too) forever.
Elmer Alvarez was a homeless man when he found a $10K check in New Haven, Connecticut.
Some people might think that he could’ve made better use of the money, but Elmer knows that it was the right thing to do with the check. Instead of cashing it in for himself, he looked for its rightful owner.
It belonged to a real estate agent Roberta Hoskie.
Roberta was in the middle of a bustling crowd in New Haven, Connecticut. She was on a busy schedule doing errands around town when her check slipped away in a busy intersection. She didn’t realize she lost it until the next day.
Roberta filmed the day she met Elmer via a Facebook live feed.
The day has come, and Roberta found Elmer with a friend. It turns out he can’t speak English that well and asked the help of a stranger to translate what he wanted to do. That is, to return the check. Roberta also found something about Elmer that shocked her.
Elmer was homeless.
She said on her live feed that while people have stereotypes about homeless people, she said never to judge them as this homeless man was a blessing for her. She returned to her office to write him a check as a reward and asked the viewers how else she could bless this man.
One of the people in the comments section said to “teach him how to fish.”
And since Roberta is in the real estate business, she realized she could send Elmer to real estate school to be a part of her company. Not only that, but she also rewarded him an apartment and paid seven months’ worth of rent to help him get back on his feet.
Roberta’s heart was drawn to Elmer’s story because it reminds her of her own past.
A past when she, too, was homeless.
She shared that she once lived in a shelter, a high school dropout, and a single mom with only around $400 to raise her son – until one day, someone blessed her with a job that led her to her success right now. Her experience of being homeless reminded her that she could be a blessing to someone and change their life, too.
A few weeks later, Roberta again filmed the day they found out how Elmer faired in his exam.
When they flipped his exam paper, he passed!
It was one step closer to giving Elmer a more permanent, long-lasting reward that can change his life. And a year after that faithful day when they met, Roberta and Elmer started their foundation to end homelessness.
They started Outreach Foundation.
For Roberta and Elmer, who went through homelessness, they created this foundation as a transitional home for homeless teenagers and provide support like church services, substance abuse awareness, and education.
From a homeless guy who found a $10,000 check to helping others in need. Indeed, it takes one drop to create a ripple.
Learn more about this wonderful man in the video below!
Please SHARE this with your friends and family.
