Accompanied by his girlfriend Donna and their dog Abby, Michael sells Street Roots and hopes to have land of his own one day
Michael Anderson’s first comment during his interview wasn’t a surprise considering he is one of the most caring, attentive and loving vendors at Street Roots.
“Donna and I want to thank everyone who has ever bought the paper from us,” Michael said. “We love you.”
Michael moved to Portland in 1995 to be closer to his girlfriend, Donna. Michael has sold Street Roots for about two years now after he found out about selling the paper from an old roommate. His favorite part about the job is meeting and talking to new people. He has a ton of customers that he calls friends.
Michael and Donna currently live together in a rented room with their dachshund, Abby. Although Michael, Donna and Abby have had some bad luck finding a place to rent before.
“We lived with a roommate, but we didn’t get along with them,” Michael said. “We had to move and then our next roommate turned on us, and we lost everything — everything was stolen last year.”
Thankfully, Michael and his family were finally able to find a stable living situation for the time being. They were able to find a room for rent and have been living there since January of this year.
“My hope is that one day I will be able to buy a trailer for the three of us,” Michael said. “I really want to genuinely own something before I leave this Earth.”
Michael is very grateful that his living situation is more comfortable than it was, but the rent is pricey, and it takes up most of his income. He tries to sell as many papers as he can to put food on the table for his family.
“My favorite food is steak, but we can only eat it on special occasions,” Michael said. “I learned to cook it in cooking school in 1979, but when I graduated school, I couldn’t keep a job because of medical reasons.”
Before Michael started to sell Street Roots, he held a sign in front of a New Seasons location asking for help with food. He and Donna had taken a break from their relationship at the time.
“The employees at New Seasons are such good people,” Michael said. “Some of them would bring me snacks to eat while they were on their break. I’ll always be thankful for that.”
When Donna and Michael got back together, he had just started selling the paper. He immediately knew that he wanted to sell the papers at New Seasons and introduce Donna and Abby to all of his friends there.
“I try to get Donna acquainted with things, and she helps me sell the paper,” Michael said. “It’s a team effort. Most of the days I go out and sell the paper I bring Abby too, so it’s like take your family to work day!”
Michael likes to listen to rock ‘n’ roll, go swimming when he can, and to collect model cars.
“I collect these cars, I just find them here and there, and I put them on a shelf right above my bed,” Michael said. “When my friends come over, they complement them, and it always makes me happy to tell them about my collection.”
Michael is an exceptionally family-oriented and kindhearted person, who one day hopes to retire with Donna and Abby, on a nice piece of land in Portland all to themselves.
You can buy Street Roots from Michael at the New Seasons at 3445 N. Williams Ave.
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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