Three million people live on the streets in the richest country in the world: the United States. A quarter at least are military veterans. One of those is vet John Lochlan of Philadelphia. His life outside is tough, his clothes dirty and torn. Many have shown him hostility over the years and it hit him hard.
Through homelessness John was excluded from society and faced not just the environmental hardships one would expect, but also violence. He has been shot and even hit by a car, which led to severe spinal damage and an infection in his ankles that made it impossible for him to stand. His swollen legs were a constant source of pain, especially when they chafed against his trousers.
With no health insurance, he’d been turned away from two hospitals. Finally, one doctor recognized what terrible condition he was in and put him on a waiting list for special assistance. But the wait was long, and John was running out of time.
Invisible to most people around him, exposed and helpless, he lost hope and faith in the goodness of people. Until someone came along who did see him and decided to take care of him.
That someone was Lolly Galvin, founder of Dignity Project, an organization that provides simple necessities (toilet paper, sleeping bags, haircuts and more) for homeless people in her hometown of Philadelphia. When she first approached him with an offer of a free haircut, he refused. He didn’t feel comfortable interacting with someone.
But Lolly wasn’t giving up so easily. She could tell that if someone didn’t help him, he wouldn’t last much longer. She persisted. A few weeks after first approaching him, she finally persuaded him to accept the free haircut.
Over the following weeks she befriended the grouchy 57-year-old. Of all the people she had helped over the course of time, she saw something in him that drove her to go the extra mile. She didn’t think he would survive the despair — not to mention his medical situation — if she left him to keep struggling alone on the street.
With this new friend at his side, John felt encouraged. He started to fight. He went with Lolly to visit a new doctor. She went with him to the specialist appointments to have his spine operated on and they even got the infection in his lower legs treated. For the first time, he was being lovingly cared for.
For years, every step had been excruciating for him. But soon he was taking steps with his own legs as the treatment began to work.
Neither John nor Lolly had expected to become close friends. Lolly was surprised to find herself developing such a strong bond to this tough, old outcast she’d met on the street. But here they were and it was making a huge difference. Even the local news eventually took notice and produced a report about their story.
Sometimes it just takes a helping hand to completely change someone’s life. John and Lolly’s story is extraordinary — but let’s hope it gets repeated all over the world, everywhere there are people in need!
