JayJay Murray/FacebookA group of kind hearted roofers helped out a homeless man with the chance for a day’s paid work.
JayJay Murray and his colleagues from Empire UPVC & Roofing Specialists, first spotted John sleeping rough on a park bench, close to where they were working near London.
The friendly team brought him a morning cuppa and asked if he would like to work with them the next day. According to JayJay, John was a hard worker, appearing early doors on site and showing a noticeably strong desire to work solidly throughout the day.
In an inspiring Facebook status, JayJay describes how he had ‘never seen anyone so happy to be at work!’
We started a new job in London on a high road this week where this homeless man called John was living on a bench in the…
Posted by JayJay Murray on Tuesday, 15 August 2017
The roofers bought John a Burger King meal for lunch, and his hard work and dedication clearly paid off. The workers were impressed with his good attitude and had a whip round for their new friend, managing to club together £70 for him.
More clearly needs to be done to change the view of homeless people being lazy and workshy, as shown in Professor Green’s BBC Documentary, Hidden and Homeless :
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JayJay described his experiences with John as a ‘real eye opener’ and noted ‘nobody willing to work should be living on the streets’.
Clearly, John also got a lot out of the experience, offering the following heartfelt goodbye at the end of his shift:
Thanks brothers its the most love I’ve ever had.
It’s acts of compassion such as these which really do have the capacity to change lives. Hopefully there will be more people willing to offer friendship towards John in the future.
Jules studied English Literature with Creative Writing at Lancaster University before earning her masters in International Relations at Leiden University in The Netherlands (Hoi!). She then trained as a journalist through News Associates in Manchester. Jules has previously worked as a mental health blogger, copywriter and freelancer for various publications.