Every major city in America has thousands of homeless people living on the streets. The homeless require our assistance and support, or they may never have the opportunity to improve their situation.
Elvis Summers discovered this when he met Irene “Smokie” McGee, sleeping on a patch of dirt outside his house. Summers saw the growing trend of people building tiny houses and decided to put his construction skills to use.
Summers met McGee after knocking on the door of his Los Angeles home in search of recyclables to exchange for money. He knew he had to do something to help the woman after noticing she didn’t even have a tarp or a box to sleep on.
The man decided to build a small house for McGee that could easily move around. He went straight to the hardware store and spent $500 on materials. The tiny home with a locked door so McGee could keep her belongings safe was finished in 2015 after several days of hard work.
Summers documented his progress on video while building the house. He later uploaded this video to YouTube, hoping to inspire others to help the homeless in their communities. He did all of that and more.
The video has received over 7.2 million views, and Summers has used the publicity to launch the Tiny House Huge Purpose fundraising campaign. Continue reading to learn more about Summers and McGee and how this man is assisting even more people in his community.
When Summers first met McGee, he had no idea how bad her situation was. “I knew she was homeless, but I didn’t realize she didn’t even have a tarp or a cardboard box to sleep in until about three weeks ago,” he told The Independent.
Despite his financial difficulties, Summers knew he had to help McGee. He revealed:
“I can barely keep my lights on, but I saw a 60-year-old woman sleeping literally in the dirt next to a house – a house where everyone is happy and warm, enjoying their hot showers and toilets to use, the food in their fridge, clean water to drink, electricity, TV, and so on.”
Summers said, “I immediately went to the hardware store and decided to buy the materials to build her a tiny house so she could at least sleep in a warm, safe place rather than the dirt. It was more important than a couple of bills that I’m sure I’ll be able to pay late and catch up on.”
After hearing what Summers did for McGee, a local church has offered their parking lot as a location for the Tiny Homes to stay overnight. “The church is willing to help with showers, food, and clothing to help all of the people in the tiny homes we put there climb back up,” Summers said.
Summers’ goal has shifted as a result of the video’s attention. “Because my video went viral and I’ve received such a huge global response,” he explained, “I’ve expanded my plan to help a few more people to help as many as I possibly can.”
What are your thoughts on what this man did? How do you assist those in your community who are in need? Please let us know, and please feel free to share this with your friends and family to inspire them.
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