Meet Victor Hubbard, a man who lived alone on the same street corner for years. That ended when another woman stepped up to the plate to change Hubbard’s life for the better.
According to a CBS news article, the woman, wife, mother, and business owner Ginger Sprouse passed by Hubbard’s corner several times a day. “It really began to concern me and then I talked to a lot of people in the community and a lot of people wondered what was the deal,” Sprouse told the local news station.
Sprouse began to stop to talk with Hubbard. “I would drive up and he would say ‘How are you doing today? Are you doing okay?’” said Sprouse, “‘Don’t ever let anybody do you wrong.’ Seriously, he always asked about me.” As time passed, Sprouse learned that Hubbard’s mother told him to wait for her to come back and pick him up at that corner years ago and that Hubbard would always return to the corner because “no matter what season it is, [he] will always have that love for her.” Sprouse learned about the mental illness Hubbard battles as well.
With all of this in mind, Sprouse decided to take it upon herself to help Hubbard. She created a Facebook page called “This is Victor” to share Hubbard’s story with the community. “I listen to people talking around town and keep hearing, ‘Someone needs to do something about that guy,’” Sprouse explained in a Facebook post to the page. “So, I will be the organizer, and I hope that we as a community can be ‘someone’ together.” The page gained Victor some 50,000 fans, with several of those fans reaching out to volunteer clothing, food, and an eye exam. Hundreds attended a block party fundraiser, which Sprouse and Hubbard held to help him get back on his feet.
Sprouse also worked with Hubbard to set up appointments with mental health clinics and manage prescriptions to help him with his mental illness. To be sure that Hubbard had a home, Sprouse welcomed Hubbard into her own and gave him a job as a cook in her restaurant. “He is a smiling, happy addition to my team,” Sprouse said. “I’m so proud.”
Hubbard says, “[Sprouse] came around and she kind of saved me. She helped me. It’s like grace.” Also,
thanks to Sprouse, Hubbard was able to connect with his uncle from East Texas, and he got the chance to speak to his mother over the phone. “I got to talk to her and I really feel like I accomplished something,” Hubbard said.
Sprouse confesses that the generosity and propensity for kindness by others in the community has inspired her, saying, “I’m so overwhelmed by the compassion by people.” Her, Hubbard’s, and the community’s journey serve as a reminder that sometimes it only takes one person to bring out the best in a stranger and in a community.
Featured Image by Garry Knight on Flickr
Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0)
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