Steven: “Hi, I’m Steven. What’s your name?”
Aiden: “Aiden.”
Steven: “Nice to meet you, Aiden. How have you been?”
Aiden: “Not the greatest to be honest. Life out here sucks.”
Steven: “I’m sorry to hear that…How long have you been homeless?”
Aiden: “Off and on for about three years. Before this, I was living in Portland, couch-surfing mostly. But eventually, I ran out of places to crash and ended up on the streets.”
Steven: “If you don’t mind me asking, how did it start for you?”
Aiden: “Well, I aged out of foster care at 18. I didn’t have family to lean on and I got kicked out. At first, I tried to make it work. I got a job at a warehouse, but when the hours got cut, I couldn’t afford rent anymore. Once I lost my apartment, it was a domino effect. Everything just fell apart.”
Steven: “That’s heartbreaking. It’s such a tough experience to navigate after aging out of foster care.”
Aiden: “It really is. People don’t realize how fast things can go south when you’re on your own at 18. No one teaches you how to budget or deal with landlords. And if you mess up once, it’s like the system just gives up on you.”
Steven: “What was foster care like for you?”
Aiden: “It wasn’t great. I bounced around a lot…seven different homes by the time I was 15. Some were okay, but others…well, let’s just say they weren’t exactly safe. I learned early on to rely on myself and keep moving.”
Steven: “That must have been so isolating.”
Aiden: “Yeah, it was. But you get used to it. You learn how to keep it moving, how to survive. It’s not great, but sometimes life just throws you out and you gotta make adjustments.”
Steven: “What’s been the hardest part of being homeless?”
Aiden: “Just seeing people with the family. I just think to myself, like Why can’t that be me? I see a father with a son going to Home Depot and I would just start crying because I wish I could have my own family, bring my son to shopping.”
Steven: “Wow. From what I’ve from others, having someone with you or just someone you can talk to regularly can help a lot so do you have anyone you talk to out here?”
Aiden: “No. You really can’t trust anyone out here. It’s terrible and I don’t allow myself to open up to others because in my foster home, I’ve been scammed a lot so I have a trust issues. I don’t really approach people and when other people see the state I’m in, they don’t approach me either.”
Steven: “I’m sorry for that. I’m glad you’re willing to talk to me. What do you do to pass the time?””
Aiden: “I don’t really do much because I’m getting old so I just sit here and that’s about it. Life out here is really really bad and I would not wish it upon anyone, so to those of you who have a home and are reading this, make sure you stay away from being homeless because it’s really really hard out here.”
Steven: “Yeah… do you ever consider maybe drawing? That’s a popular thing people do out here.”
Aiden: “I’ve thought about it, but I don’t really have the supplies.”
Steven: “I can get you supplies after this interview”
Aiden: “Okay, that’s very generous of you.”
Steven: (laughs) “It’s the least I can do…Do you have something that might surprise people?”
Aiden: “I was in a robotics club in high school. We even won a regional competition. I thought I’d go into engineering, but college wasn’t meant for me , I guess. I still love building things, figuring out how stuff works.”
Steven: “Do you ever think about going back to school?”
Aiden: “Sometimes. An old buddy of mine is studying mechanical engineering. But when you’re out here, it’s hard to even imagine that kind of future. It feels so far away.”
Steven: “Do you still speak to him?”
Aiden: “Yeah, but it’s been a while.”
Steven: “You should try to reach out… do you remember his name? You can try to contact him on my phone”
Aiden: “No no it’s okay. He probably doesn’t remember me.”
Steven: “You never know…if my friend was in trouble, I would help him so give yourself and your friend more credit”
Aiden: “Really? You think so?”
Steven: “Yes, I’m sure of it.”
Aiden: “Okay, we can do that after the interview.”
Steven: “Yep! Awesome. Just a few more questions…What keeps you going?”
Aiden: “The little things. People like you who want to know more about me, who treat me like human. Sure, I might have trouble going up to people, but for those who come up to me and respect me, I see them as friends. I really didn’t have many friends growing up, so friends do mean a lot, and thank you for coming up to me.”
Steven: “Thank you so much! I’m glad I have the opportunity to be speaking with you right now. If you have three wishes, what would they be?”
Aiden: “Three wishes eh? I’d wish for a home obviously because that’s my main problem right now. Second, I wish for a chance to go back to school and finish what I started with robotics and make more friends. And my last wish is for everyone to see each other as humans because everyone just sees the number and assume that we’re all problems. Seriously, how could you think that. But anyway man, thanks for the interview.”
Steven: “No problem and I hope you the best of luck Aiden, thank you for sharing your story. Let’s try reaching out to your friend now.”
Thank you for the auspicious writeup. It in fact was a amusement account it. Look advanced to more added agreeable from you! By the way, how could we communicate?
People don’t realize how easy it is to fall into homelessness. One bad break, and suddenly, you’re out of options.
I really hope he gets his three wishes, especially that last one. If people saw the homeless as people instead of problems, things would start to change.
..so sad 🙁 stop disregarding homeless people like they’re not human and this is what happens!
People look at the homeless and assume they’re just lazy or criminals but THAT IS OBVIOUSLY NOT THE CASE
also I don’t think people realize how impossible it is to get back on your feet once you fall. No address means no job. No job means no money. No money means no home. It’s almost impossible to stop this without help.
“Better is a poor man who walks in his integrity than a rich man who is crooked in his ways.” Proverbs 28:6
May God bless Aiden
All I want to do is give him a hug and tell him it will all be okay. God Bless you Aiden. I hope only the best for you and I love you.
Doubling this message. Hoping him the best
I’m ashamed to be living in such a society where we’re told that we’re one of the richest countries in the world where this amazing individual and many others like him in the lower class are left to the streets and treated like garbage!! I’m sick of this. They are HUMAN BEINGS! Why can’t we treat them like ones?!
This is exactly why we need programs that provide stable housing for young adults aging out of foster care. The system basically sets them up to fail
Drawing cityscapes because he dreams of living in one of those buildings? That broke me. We take so much for granted like how many of us have such passion and talents like him??
That part hit hard. So many people are one paycheck or one bad break away from being in Aiden’s shoes
Absolutely. There are organizations trying to fix this, but they need more funding. Prevention is so much cheaper than crisis intervention
Aiden being in a robotics club and winning a competition just proves that potential is everywhere but no one is willing to be there to help him… very troubling
also the fact that he has trust issues because of being scammed in foster care is devastating.
he also comes across as a thoughtful person, and it’s heartbreaking that he’s out here alone.
How many future engineers, artists, and creators are we losing to homelessness because society refuses to invest in them?
This is why the stereotype of homeless people being ‘lazy’ is so wrong.
. I’ve read your article many times, and your memory lives on in a good way. You deserved so much more than this
I teared up when he talked about seeing dads with their kids and wishing that could be him. That pain is something you cannot forget
Yeah, that part hit me too. People don’t realize how much it hurts
that’s why we need to end the stigma surrounding homelessness
as a former person who was homeless and now a father, I will never forget that experience. It’s part of me now
I really hope he gets that chance to go back to school. He clearly has so much potential.
We need actual support for kids aging out of foster care. We can’t just throw them into the world at 18 and expect them to figure it out alone.
It’s ridiculous that we have stuff to raise them, and then suddenly it’s good luck, you’re on your own.
Thank you Steven to encouraged him to reach out to his friend. Sometimes just one person believing in you can change everything 🙂
Thank you so much, Bati!
I really hope Aiden’s friend picks up that phone call. Even if they haven’t spoken in a while, I bet he’d be happy to hear from him.
If my friend needed help, you can bet that I’ll be there in a second
Aiden deserves kindness, and I’m glad he got it in this moment. Wishing him nothing but the best.
We need to do better as a society. No one should have to wish for a home