When Chris Crever, a property investor, saw a homeless man squatting in his new house, as expected, he asked the man to leave. James and his friend had taken shelter in the empty home during heavy rainfall. They stayed the night with sleeping bags and blankets, when they left for a few hours and returned, they noticed that all of their bedding had been thrown away. That's when they encountered Chris, who said the two men would have to leave.
“I was sad, but what else could you do?” James told KOIN's Jennifer Downing. He thanked Chris and went on his way. Then Chris had a bit of an epiphany — much like Police Chief Aaron Easton, he knew he had to give back.
“He understood, wasn’t bitter about it and thanked me as I walked away,” Chris said. “Before I got in my car, I’m thinking, ‘What did he thank me for? I just asked him to leave what he would consider his home.’”
So Chris walked right back up to James and told him to meet him back at the property on Monday at 8:30 a.m. James showed up at 7:45 a.m., Chris offered him a job and a room in the house. While the job and room are only temporary, Chris is looking to gather community support to help find James permanent work and long-term housing.
“To have this around Christmastime…" James says. "It’s almost like God smiling down.”
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