When meeting Dale for the first time, you can’t help but notice his radiant and authentic smile. He is often in a jovial mood, spreading positivity all around the Street Roots office.
Dale started selling Street Roots in 2017.
“Street Roots helps more than anything,” he said. “I sold about 12 papers yesterday, and I was able to buy some groceries, replace my reading glasses, and I even have a little bit of money left over. I’m able to help my mom with the bills, I can afford bus fare, and I can buy a pack of cigarettes if I want to.”
When Dale has a good day selling the papers, he likes to stop by the grocery store on his way back to his mom’s house, where he is currently living.
“I love to surprise my mom with some fresh vegetables and chicken,” he said. “I surprise her when I can before she comes home from a long day at work.”
Dale started selling the paper after a catastrophic health event. He suffered from systemic pneumonia and was in a medically induced coma for 28 days.
“I really didn’t remember much when I was picked up from my tent. Next time I woke up, the doctor asked me what day it was, I said Jan. 17, and he told me it was Feb. 7.”
Dale said he doesn’t spend much time thinking of how he caught pneumonia, but he knows it didn’t help that he was out in the cold constantly and wasn’t eating as healthy as he would like. He only spent two weeks in physical therapy after waking up because his insurance was unable to cover more time for recovery. He knew he needed to find a different way to live, which is how he found a job at Street Roots. His mom then offered him a place to stay while he was healing.
“I was staying at my mom’s, and I was helping her with the dishes and keeping peace in the house. My mom and I get along great now. She stands up for me. We watch the same TV shows, we play dice together, we even made up this game to find how many words you can think of when you see someone’s license plate.”
Dale remembers living in his tent. He kept it as tidy as he could. He especially remembers the neighborhood. It was quiet and he had plenty of space to himself. He would wake up on some mornings to a cup of hot coffee and a doughnut. He never knew where it came from, but he always appreciated it.
Dale recuperated from his coma and was able to become an active member of his community again. He enjoys traveling around the city and meeting new people. Any time he sees someone who needs something, like a cigarette or an extra pair of gloves, he is happy to give when he can. He makes an effort to gather what he needs to get by, while also thinking of others, which is another reason why he enjoys selling the newspaper.
“Not everyone who is homeless is bad,” Dale said. “They get shunned because of the way they look and dress. They are just people trying to find the right place in our community. These people are some of the most generous and caring people.”
Dale loves to socialize. He has a lot of good friends and some noteworthy regulars at his newspaper post. He is a member of the Agape Church of Christ, where he said he has met some incredibly welcoming and laid-back people. They invited him for breakfast one day, and while he was inside, he remembers hearing music from the choir.
“That music was just so beautiful. I don’t remember the lyrics; I just remember the feeling. I could relate to the sound so much. I decided to become a member right then and there.
“I’m alive, I’m doing good, I’m being treated well. I am grateful,” he added.
You can buy Street Roots from Dale at his sales post at the QFC market on the corner of Southeast 55th Avenue and Burnside Street from noon to 6 p.m. every Wednesday.
Street Roots is an award-winning weekly publication focusing on economic, environmental and social justice issues. The newspaper is sold in Portland, Oregon, by people experiencing homelessness and/or extreme poverty as means of earning an income with dignity. Street Roots newspaper operates independently of Street Roots advocacy and is a part of the Street Roots organization. Learn more about Street Roots. Support your community newspaper by making a one-time or recurring gift today.
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