One of the first things you might want to ask Rabbit is how he got his name. His story, as almost everything he shares about himself, is grounded in his family.
“My son was five then,” he said. “We were living in Denver, Colorado, and we were walking down the street to a Rockies game. I was wearing a top hat and someone said I looked like the rabbit in Alice in Wonderland. The name stuck because I’m always rushing; I can never be late.”
Rabbit’s son is now 23 years old, his daughter is 22, and he has three grandkids.
“It’s pretty cool,” he said. “And the youngest one turns one year old today.”
Although Rabbit’s entire family is still back in and around Kansas City, he stays in close contact with them.
“My family connections keep me going,” Rabbit said. “As long as I can call and talk to my mom every day after she gets off work, I’m fine.”
It was his mom who taught Rabbit his trade: cooking.
“I’m proud of my mom and how she taught me," Rabbit said. "She started me cooking when I was about knee-high standing on a crate over a gas stove. I was cooking four-course meals for my family when I was nine years old.”
What are Rabbit’s favorite meals to prepare?
“Down home meals like mashed potatoes and meatloaf, the kinds of meals that stay in your belly,” he said.
Rabbit has worked in restaurants for many years. He worked almost all of the last winter at Tik Tok in Portland. It was a good job for him because it accommodated his schedule. He was able to work overnight while a friend took care of his dog Tucker.
Three-year-old Tucker, a pit bull-bulldog mix, is Rabbit’s best friend. At first, last year when a friend asked Rabbit to adopt Tucker, Rabbit said he wasn’t ready for the responsibility of taking care of a dog. Taking care of a dog requires a regular schedule and the safety of a real home, he explained, not a tent. But his friend urged him, saying that Tucker had been abused, so Rabbit agreed. Rabbit has been accommodating work schedules and living spaces with Tucker in mind ever since.
“We’re best friends,” Rabbit said. “Tucker has such a great spirit. We fit together perfectly.”
You might see Tucker with Rabbit selling Street Roots in the Hollywood District or alongside Rabbit in the Street Roots office.
“Street Roots is my other family,” Rabbit said.
Rabbit has been with Street Roots for seven years. Introduced to the organization by a friend, Rabbit said he thought it was such a great deal.
“You have a job with a purpose,” he said. “Your customers appreciate buying a paper from someone who is clean and sober and trying to make an honest dollar.”
Rabbit appreciates Street Roots and the way it provides resources and opportunity.
“They’re not giving us a hand out; they’re giving us a hand up," Rabbit said. "They’re giving us the tools to go out and do something for ourselves. That makes you feel so much better about yourself. If you use the tools properly, you can thrive.”
If you’d like to help give Rabbit and Tucker a hand up, Venmo Rabbit via @streetroots Venmo and enter his badge number (491) in the transaction note.
Street Roots is an award-winning weekly investigative publication covering economic, environmental and social inequity. 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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