The Matthew D. Fundraiser
Donation protected
I'm raising money for a kind young homeless man that I met in July 2017. Here is the story:
I wanted to share my experience I had on Monday in NYC:
I'm 27 years old. I take the same route home every day. Walk down 5th Ave to 34th street and then go down to Penn. Today outside of Duane Reade I noticed a young ginger kid (how can you miss that right?). Now I've never seen him before and he was sitting on a red milk crate with a sign that just said "Please help. I'm 18 and have been on my own since 14". If you know me, you know how close this hits home.
I stopped in my tracks to call Danny Davis who is so similar to me in the sense of giving up our seats to let elder people sit on the train so I knew he'd be the one to understand. I explained to him what I walked past and after a few seconds he said "Lauren, if you're actually calling me to ask what to do, just do it."
I went inside Duane Reade, grabbed two water bottles and a red Gatorade. I asked the clerk if he's seen the kid here before and he replied "Everyday for at least the last 7 months". I brought them outside and said in my most chipper voice "HEY!".
He looked up confused.
He said "are these for me?!"
I said "yup"
He said "all 3?!"
I said "yup!"
He asked me if he could keep the plastic bag, I said of course.
I introduced myself and he said his name was Matthew and he was from Delaware. I asked him how he got here and he proceeded to tell me that he was in foster care for most of his life and when he turned 18, CPS said he should go to a homeless shelter in NY for better opportunities. When he got to NY they told him he needed his birth certificate and social security card, two things which CPS said they would mail over. They didn't and now they don't feel comfortable since he doesn't have a physical address so he can't even get in the shelter, let alone get work.
I got the kids name and the CPS workers name and all I have to do is put into motion of how we can get those papers over here even if I physically have to drive to Delaware and get them myself.
I watched the kid nervously smile twice as I continuously told him that NY is "rough as hell" and my best advice would be to try to start over in Delaware until you have your feet on the ground.
This all took place over 10 minutes.
Did I miss my train? Yes.
Did I sit Indian style on the gross manhattan sidewalk? Yes.
Did I spend $10 on a random person? Yes
Could this have been all a hoax and he's been a scam artist since he was 10? Yes.
While all the above is very much true, what matters the most is I saw a kid smile twice when it doesn't even look like he's smiled in years. I saw a kid almost start crying as I told him I could and WOULD drive to Delaware for him, a random stranger.
Life isn't about what you could do. No, that's not what changes the world. It's about WHAT YOU ACTUALLY DO. 10 minutes of YOUR time could drastically change the life of another.
My goal with this GoFund me account is to provide water (a lot of water in the hot summer months), food, and anything else we can provide to help jump start this young mans future.
I wanted to share my experience I had on Monday in NYC:
I'm 27 years old. I take the same route home every day. Walk down 5th Ave to 34th street and then go down to Penn. Today outside of Duane Reade I noticed a young ginger kid (how can you miss that right?). Now I've never seen him before and he was sitting on a red milk crate with a sign that just said "Please help. I'm 18 and have been on my own since 14". If you know me, you know how close this hits home.
I stopped in my tracks to call Danny Davis who is so similar to me in the sense of giving up our seats to let elder people sit on the train so I knew he'd be the one to understand. I explained to him what I walked past and after a few seconds he said "Lauren, if you're actually calling me to ask what to do, just do it."
I went inside Duane Reade, grabbed two water bottles and a red Gatorade. I asked the clerk if he's seen the kid here before and he replied "Everyday for at least the last 7 months". I brought them outside and said in my most chipper voice "HEY!".
He looked up confused.
He said "are these for me?!"
I said "yup"
He said "all 3?!"
I said "yup!"
He asked me if he could keep the plastic bag, I said of course.
I introduced myself and he said his name was Matthew and he was from Delaware. I asked him how he got here and he proceeded to tell me that he was in foster care for most of his life and when he turned 18, CPS said he should go to a homeless shelter in NY for better opportunities. When he got to NY they told him he needed his birth certificate and social security card, two things which CPS said they would mail over. They didn't and now they don't feel comfortable since he doesn't have a physical address so he can't even get in the shelter, let alone get work.
I got the kids name and the CPS workers name and all I have to do is put into motion of how we can get those papers over here even if I physically have to drive to Delaware and get them myself.
I watched the kid nervously smile twice as I continuously told him that NY is "rough as hell" and my best advice would be to try to start over in Delaware until you have your feet on the ground.
This all took place over 10 minutes.
Did I miss my train? Yes.
Did I sit Indian style on the gross manhattan sidewalk? Yes.
Did I spend $10 on a random person? Yes
Could this have been all a hoax and he's been a scam artist since he was 10? Yes.
While all the above is very much true, what matters the most is I saw a kid smile twice when it doesn't even look like he's smiled in years. I saw a kid almost start crying as I told him I could and WOULD drive to Delaware for him, a random stranger.
Life isn't about what you could do. No, that's not what changes the world. It's about WHAT YOU ACTUALLY DO. 10 minutes of YOUR time could drastically change the life of another.
My goal with this GoFund me account is to provide water (a lot of water in the hot summer months), food, and anything else we can provide to help jump start this young mans future.
Organizer
Lauren Bagnasco
Organizer
New York, NY
