Walking in the city, I saw Bruce. Bruce sat in his usual
area, on the footpath but out of the way of passers-by, with all his
possessions next to him: his sleeping bag and a couple of small bags with his
clothes. I went to sit next to him and we had a chat. I sat on the ground, just
like him, but he offered his bag of clothes for me to sit on because he figured
it would be more comfortable. I declined and said I was perfectly fine sitting
on the ground.
Now Bruce is someone who would never harm a fly. He would
give, and has regularly given, his last dollar to a charity, a hospital or a
church. He feels he has everything he needs because he has his clothes, his
sleeping bag and most meals, what more could he possibly want. He says there
are so many people in greater need than him who would be helped by his funding
of these charities, hospitals or the church. A man with very modest
requirements for himself but with an observant eye for what is lacking in
society: care for people who are doing it tough.
Bruce told me Grant had given him some money a little
while ago when he was broke, and he wanted to do something in return. Like
Grant, he wanted to do something for someone else, and he asked me to take his
sleeping bag and give it to a homeless person or bring it to our next BBQ for
the Homeless and Others in Need. He had only bought it recently, and showed me
the receipt to show me that he honestly paid for it (haha, you gotta love
Bruce!). He said he had slept in it so perhaps I should check it out and see
what I think. He said it was too warm for him to sleep in, there was no need
for him to have a sleeping bag. I said that the colder months would be coming
soon, he would need his sleeping bag, but he insisted I take it and give it to
someone else.
I suggested Bruce think about it. I said both Grant and I
were in the city regularly, and if he still wanted to donate his sleeping bag
in two days time, we would take it then. But Bruce was adamant I take it now. I
offered him some money for it, but he did not want any money. He just wanted to
do something for someone else because Grant had done something for him.
I asked how he was going to sleep without his sleeping
bag, and he replied “Oh, I’ll be alright. I’ll sleep on a piece of cardboard or
something”. Accepting a homeless man’s sleeping bag to give to someone else was
something I struggled with, but then, who am I to deny him to help someone
else… I could see it was his wholehearted desire and decision to give it away,
and who am I not to respect that. I still protested, saying I thought he should
keep his sleeping bag, but he did not want to hear it, and so I ended up finding
myself taking it to give to someone else who needed it more than Bruce.
I asked him where he was going to sleep tonight, and he
said he wasn’t sure, perhaps he would just sleep where he was. I asked if it
was an OK place to sleep, and his face changed from happy and involved to drawn
and worried. I said “It’s not an OK place to sleep?”, and he shook his head. I
checked if he knew a better, safer place, and again he shook his head. We
didn’t go into things too much, but we concluded things were better during the
day. A little while later I left to get on with my day, walking away from Bruce
with his sleeping bag in my hand to find it a new owner. And Bruce went on with
his day, too, right where he was sitting: a man with no home who had just given
away his own sleeping bag so that someone else could be helped. People who have
the least often are the most generous…
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Just a brief aside about our BBQ. Our BBQ for the
Homeless, Flood Victims and People in Need is coming up on Sunday 17 February. Donations
of clothes, shoes, toiletries, toys, small household goods etc and/or soft
drinks can be dropped off to The Polite Team at Post Office Square, Brisbane,
on Friday 15 February between 7AM and 2PM. If you have larger things to donate,
such as furniture, please contact Grant on 0412 190 011.
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Something completely different now: the Polite Team has
been very involved in fund raising for several causes. Firstly, we have joined
forces with others as Team Polite People to raise money for the Leukaemia
Foundation by participating in the World’s Greatest Shave, so that others may
be helped better. Yes, in March both Grant and I as well as Denise and Dave
will shave back to a Number One. I include the link to our Team page here so
you can tax-deductibly donate if you wish – we hope you will! We hope to raise
a lot of dollars for the Leukaemia Foundation and that we will not be walking
around with no hair for nothing! We do need donations, so please support us if
you can:
Secondly, Grant has been nominated to be Heritage Bank’s
Volunteer of the Year for 2012. 2012 was another year in which Grant tirelessly
helped the homeless and others in need, both on a large scale with his BBQs and
on a one-on-one basis, as well as raised awareness through this blog and through talking with people. A Big Issue vendor, Grant selflessly spends much of his
money on helping others, and his enthusiasm gets many people inspired and on
board. Winning the competition would give him $1,000 towards the coffee cart
project he is ready to start, and it would give Grant’s charity organization
Signal Flare a very welcome injection of $10,000 towards the BBQs and other
forms of large-scale help for the homeless and others in need. All you have to
do to vote for Grant is click! If you would like to give him your vote – and he
needs a lot of votes to beat the current Number One – here is the link: https://www.facebook.com/heritage?sk=app_386506774774794&app_data
First like the page, then click on “Vote Now”, go to R
for Grant Richards, scroll down to Grant’s nomination and vote. Lastly, don’t
forget to reply to the confirmation email or your vote won’t count. Please
note: the competition closes on Friday 15 February.
That’s about it for me now. Please all take care and be
safe, and watch this space for more updates.
Written by Bernie the Polite Girl from the Polite Team
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