James is a prominent businessman, director of a company he founded and brought to success. It’s been 20 years since he lived on the streets, but at times those years are as real to him as though they were happening now.

James was a newly minted college graduate, with a job lined up with a social services agency months before he finished school. Up until then, he had led a middle class life, and raised to believe he had an obligation to help those less fortunate than himself. He intended to put in his time as a social worker for a few years, the way other young men and women would join the Peace Corps.

He can still remember the shock when he was called into the director’s office, and told the agency was dissolving, and his services were no longer required. The economy was bad, people weren’t giving, and those who had been working in service to others were now among the unemployed. 

James found himself in a rapid, downward spiral. The only degree and experience he had was in social work, and all the agencies in Okaloosa County were firing people, not hiring them.. And his problems were just beginning. James didn’t realize how quickly the eviction process could proceed until he got behind on his rent and it happened to him. 

Living on the fringe takes resourcefulness and a skill set James had to develop quickly. He still had his car, which was old but paid for. He looked for work every day in Okaloosa County, then drove to Bay County to shower at the beach and rinse out his clothes. He parked his car in the back lots behind hotels, sleeping in the back with his drying clothes spread over him, hiding him from police flashlights and curious travelers. Eventually he found a job at one of the hotels that unknowingly provided him with an address from time to time. He worked the night shift, and was given a trailer to sleep in. He made 50 cents an hour, working 12 hour shifts, and was grateful beyond belief for the chance to stay clean and at least minimally fed.

James eventually found a job that required a college degree, and began his work to build his own agency, so that he would never be on the wrong end of a lay-off. The resources and skills he learned were helpful, and the nights spent hungry were motivational. He still thinks, however, that there are less catastrophic ways to learn to be a success.

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Okaloosa Walton Homeless Continuum Care / Opportunity, Inc.
941-L Central Avenue  |  Fort Walton Beach, FL 32547
 Phone: (850) 226-7694  |  info@okaloosawaltonhomeless.org

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