Reformed addict turned barber is helping the homeless

I saw this while I was bumbling about the interwebz and I thought it was a pretty cool idea.

A barber in Australia who dealt with his own addictions is using his experiences to reach out to the homeless. He travels the streets offering them a free haircut and some conversation. He believes that the simple act of cleaning them up and talking to them can improve their outlook on things enough to potentially help them get back on their feet.

Knowing how much better I feel after I get my head cleaned up, I'm not surprised to hear that there's been some success stories.

For those on ATS that think nothing good is happening, I challenge you to take a look at the article. Maybe it's nothing big and earth shaking, but I bet those who have been on the receiving end of his generosity would be happy to tell you how much a difference it made in their lives.

www.sbs.com.au...

a reply to: Shamrock6

Thank you for posting that story and of course there are caring people in the world, but people always love to go on about all the bad.

a reply to: Shamrock6

I'm surprised there aren't more replies to this thread. This man is an angel for the homeless in Melbourne as far as I'm concerned. It is beautiful someone has changed and started doing some good for the world.

Idk what the man's drug of choice was before he became addicted to cutting the hair of the homeless, but the fact that he was able to get over the mental and physical withdrawal in such a charitable way is simply beautiful.

Many with addiction issues should get motivated by this story.

Very good story
Its amazing how a simple act of kindness can change a persons day, even thier outlook on life.
Ive seen it first hand many times from a group i belong to call RAK - random acts of kindness.
One instance that sticks out particularly was at a walmart.
I was waiting in line to buy a Bunch of useless junk.nthere was a woman infront of me buying some canned goods and ramen noodles. By her appearance it was clear she didnt have much money. She also had a bunch of christmas cards amungst her few items. The clerk ran her things threw, and as the bill went up, she started removing food to pay for the xmas cards. By the time the bill was up, she had 3 xmas cards, a cup of ramen and a can of soup. I think she was concerned about getting a couple people close to her something of appreciating and was willing to go hungry for it.
She went to pay her tab with a handfull of change.
I said to her, hold on, put the rest of that stuff back, want to pay for it for you.

She looked at me and said are you for real?
I told her yes, i want to pay for it all. Her tab was litterally $10. But to her it might as well of been a million dollars.
She had tears in her eyes and said thank you over and over to me, then gave me a big hug. She said " you are christmas. "
I remember it so clearly because it made me happy to be able to help her.
My father was with me, in town for the holidays and said to me, " Youve become a good man' son."

After being an addict for so long, ive been sober for almost 3 years now.
But for a long time i forgot what it was like to be human.
Being able to give back when i can doesnt erase the things i did before,
but certainly is a good start.

a reply to: Macenroe82

All I can say is congratulations on your sobriety. I don't know from personal experience, but I know from my line of work what a hard road it can be. Be proud of yourself.

@ everybody else - I thought it was a great story (obviously) and am both surprised and not surprised it hasn't gotten more attention.

Oh well. At least some people enjoyed it