Billy Meyer has lost family members, but he has found a new family.
His first family adopted him when he and his twin sister were 3 days old.
“I grew up in a very diverse family in Kansas City, Mo.,” Billy says. “I had an older brother who was Welsh. And then my little sister, she was from Nigeria. My adopted father was half Chinese, half American, and my adopted mother was full-blooded Chinese. They had a (biological) daughter who later died of muscular dystrophy. I vaguely remember her; she was my big sister.”
When Billy told his adopted parents he was gay, they were fully supportive.
“They (became) the president and vice president of PFLAG — Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays. They helped get the chapter started, there in Kansas City.”
He says that because of his upbringing, “I love all cultures. I was raised to love everybody, no matter who they were.”
As an adult, Billy went on to earn degrees in journalism and criminal justice and served in the U.S. Army.
Almost five years ago, Billy met his husband, Rodney. Billy’s parents immediately welcomed Rodney into the family.
“My mother had a crush on Rodney,” Billy says with a laugh. “I’d tell her, ‘Mom, that’s my man! You’ve got Daddy!’ We just teased each other back and forth. My mother and father loved him. My mom and dad used to go (with us) to the gay bars down in Kansas City, and we’d throw darts.”
Three years ago, both of Billy’s parents died. One year ago, his husband became gravely ill.
“The last hour of his life, Rodney woke up. He told me, ‘I know you’re going to mourn, but find somebody. Don’t be alone.’”
After Rodney died, Billy became homeless off and on. He arrived in Portland in November.
“I had just gotten off Greyhound,” he says. “I was depressed. I was waiting for a room to open up because I got here at 4:30 in the morning.”
A Street Roots vendor named Willie saw Billy and strongly urged him to go to a vendor orientation.
“I think he knew what my original plans were,” Billy says. “I was going to kill myself. I was just too depressed. He saved my life.
“I started selling newspapers. I felt that I had a purpose in life, that dying was not a good idea.”
Now, “to me, (Street Roots) is a necessity. It’s a life necessity. For a long time I gave up writing. And now I’m back into something I love.”
Billy is combining his journalism and military experience by writing a Street Roots article about the Veterans Stand Down event at the Veterans Memorial Coliseum. The Sept. 11 event will assist veterans and their families in rebuilding their lives.
Other things are looking up for Billy. Using Social Security Survivor Benefits, he recently found an inexpensive room and moved off the streets.
“We’re a family here at Street Roots,” he says. “I’ve found people that I care about and they care about me. I finally feel alive for the first time in 11 months.”