Mr. Jesse Pullins is stable now, but that wasn't always the case. There was a time when he couldn't pay rent. There were a few times that he couldn't pay rent. And these few times led him to the streets where he slept on cardboard. In his mind, it was a temporary situation. He would stay there a week and be able to get back on his feet. A week turned into two. Two turned into three. Three turned into months. Months turned into five years.
Sleeping under the bridge and eating from dumpsters became his normal. "I had some good food from those dumpsters--some of the best food in New Orleans," he said.
On the streets Jesse became addicted to crack. The money he would acquire would go towards his habit, and eventually took over his life. One night, he was staying on the streets with a friend. His friend had $20 and a bicycle. They had been friends for a while, and Jesse would always be the one that would go get the crack and bring it back to them so that they could do it together. However this one night, Jesse realized that it was this man's last $20, and knew that when he brought the crack back to him, Jesse wouldn't be able to partake. So instead, Jesse decided to use the money to buy drugs for himself. Knowing that he couldn't go back to his friend, he sold the $300 bike for just $40.
Walking over the bridge that night, Jesse began to realize what he had done. He decided, he'd end it all. He was in the perfect place to do so--all he needed to do was jump off the bridge. But the bridge wasn't high enough to ensure death. He thought, "What if I just break an arm or a leg? Then I'd just be a crippled junkie." He'd be in a worse position than he was in already.
Instead, Jesse dropped to his knees and expressed his hatred of himself to God, and begged for his help. The next day, Jesse went to a local shelter. He stayed there for a while--9 months to be exact. During his stay, he started helping out in the clothing room. He'd organize the donations and assist people that came in to seek clothing.
One lady continuously came in. She was always nicely dressed, he noted. "I wasn't necessarily attracted to her at first, but man there was something about her." He was too nervous to talk to her (which for someone who was so willing to tell me his story is hard to believe), and looked for a way to do so.
She came in for meals often, and one day Jesse had prepared a way to talk to her. He devised a plan: the shelter did not put salt and pepper on the table. So, when she was eating her lunch and asked for salt and pepper, he would be the one to bring it to her, and they could strike up a conversation. The plan was set, and she was ready. When she came in, she ate her lunch, without salt and pepper. But she walked up to him and said, "Do you have 35 cents I could use to make a phone call?" Nervously searching his pockets, Jesse had a few singles, but couldn't round up 35 cents. She graciously said, "thanks anyway," and left the shelter. He had missed his chance.
For the next two weeks, the woman didn't come to the shelter. But Jesse made sure to have one thing on him every day in case she did: 35 cents. After two weeks without coming around, the woman showed up for a meal. Jesse walked up to her and handed her 35 cents.
With that, the woman started talking to Jesse more. Day by day they started developing a connection. They would walk everywhere together and stay out as late as their respected shelters would allow. Sitting on benches all day every day, they would talk about life and plans.
It hit him. This was his woman. He had been married before when he was young, but it wasn't love--it was convenience. This on the other hand, was something else. He wanted to spend every day with her, and he wanted to be able to provide for her. He heard about an opening at the Marriott, and the next day Jesse rounded up the best clothes he could find at the shelter, and walked to the hotel to apply. He realized he didn't have adequate references, work experiences, or an education, but what he had was his story and his ambitions. After telling his story, he ended with, "this job is the fine line between me going to sleep on cardboard, or me moving forward with my life." Jesse was hired on the spot.
After staying at the shelter and saving money for a while, Jesse was able to take his lady around town to look for a place to stay. While walking around, they came across a really beat down house. But, through the windows they were able to see a beautiful mantel, and she fell in love. A few weeks later they moved in, just to find out that the house had been broken into, and the beautiful mantel had been stolen. "She didn't care though--it was our home, and I paid our rent."
Jesse and his love slept on the floor every night on a pile of blankets. But one day, while walking home from work, Jesse came across a folded up mattress frame in the garbage. He carried it home, fixed it up a bit, and placed it in their bedroom. They slept on the floor in the middle of their very own mattress frame.
After a few weeks the hotel offered him a box spring that they were throwing out. Eagerly, he took it, and used a shopping cart to wheel it home the miles to his house. They were closer to having a bed.
While working his ass off, and saving his money, Jesse was able to save up enough money to buy them a mattress. Alas, they had a home, and they had a bed.
Jesse recalled this time of his life not as a struggle, but as a blessing. His wife passed away after five years, which Jesse said he was OK with. "Five years with her was better than none."
His motivation to work was stronger than ever. After five months, he earned employee of the month. He was continuously promoted, and earned employee of the year six years in a row. Currently, seventeen years later, he holds one of the most prominent positions at his hotel, is a speaker for programs across the country, and is on the board for three organizations, including my very own UNITY.
Although Jesse has remarried since, I can't help but have a warm heart over the truest love story I've had the pleasure of hearing. Helping each other out of struggle and addiction, and forming a life together with little to nothing, but with an overload of love and happiness, is something that not many people can relate to.
Jesse, now famous across the country as a homeless advocate, is stable. But, he knows how much it takes to get there. He credits all of his success and his survival to God, but also to the love of his life.
