It’s not always easy to stay positive when you don’t have a bed to sleep in, a roof over your head, or a job to support you. Evan, however, doesn’t seem to have trouble keeping a smile on his face throughout the short time I sat down to chat with him.
“I know people out there who got it a lot worse than I do,” he says.
This humbleness characterizes Evan’s relaxed, easygoing personality, which has stuck with him through his relocation from Brooklyn to his new adopted family in Portland when he was 12 years old; through a head-on collision in high school from which he suffered a massive concussion and endured a blood transfusion; and through living in a friend’s van today.
Evan grew up in a big family, now having eight sisters and five brothers spread across the U.S.
Ever since he was a kid watching “Emergency!” on television, he wanted to help people — a desire expanded by the car crash he experienced as a teenager.
“I always say to myself that before I die I hope I get to save somebody’s life,” he says.
In high school he worked with Yamhill County Search and Rescue, and planned to be a medic in the army, but was unable to because of plates left in his legs from the surgery after his collision. He even took some paramedic training. Now, he participates in blood drives and hopes to possibly work with the Red Cross doing disaster relief in the future.
“I’ve been helped, so I’m lucky to be here, so I want to return the favor,” he said.
Evan’s been without a home since he lost his last steady job, but he found Street Roots in April 2013.
“At least it’s something,” he said. “I’m doing something at least, and people appreciate it.”
Working at Street Roots has given Evan a small source of steady income — he’s made money every day since he started, he said.
Having worked various jobs, he knows that work doesn’t usually just fall into your lap. He’s worked at many places, such as at Fred Meyer, Chevrolet and in crowd management services. He was recently hired to work the food and beverage station at Cirque du Soleil, which just came to Portland on March 27.
“Like somebody says, don’t you want to do something with your life? And I say, yes, but you know, it takes time,” he said. “It doesn’t happen so quickly.”
Whatever he does, Evan advises other people in similar situations not to give up, which makes him think of a quote by Milton Berle about opportunity knocking.
“Somebody says, ‘well, what if it doesn’t knock?’ Milton Berle said, ‘If opportunity doesn’t knock, build a door,’” he said. “That’s pretty cool. Like anybody would say to me, don’t give up.”
Evan hopes to move inside as soon as he gets a steady income, with the help of JOIN and his optimism to keep going.
“I wake up every day so that’s good. I thank God for that,” he said. “It’ll work out.”
You can say hello to Evan at his sales site in front of the Zupan’s on Southeast 33rd Avenue and Belmont.
