Monday to Friday, twice a day, Ray Soucy makes the trip to Burrard and Hastings, where he has been selling Vancouver’s street paper for the last 17 years. His customers have included former Prime Minister Joe Clark, former mayors Philip Owen and Sam Sullivan. But while Ray gets a kick out of some of his more influential customers, it’s his regulars that keep him coming back each day. “Selling street newspapers, you end up meeting some of the nicest people in the world,” he explains. “These are wonderful people who feel like they can make a difference and change things for someone.”

But while Ray has explored a number of various occupations over the years, he continues to vend because, for him, the paper is an important vehicle for helping the disenfranchised. “We deal with issues that the popular press doesn’t deem sexy enough to cover, such as homelessness, poverty and addiction,” explains Soucy. “I think we’re bang on with our mission statement because this paper really is for the marginalized of society.”

With more than 14 years under his belt, Danny Maloney is one of Megaphone’s longest serving vendors, having become totally self-sufficient by selling the magazine at his long-time location outside of Capers at 4th and Vine.

Originally from Toronto, Danny moved to Vancouver almost 30 years ago when he made the decision to escape a life of drug and alcohol abuse. After a few bumps along the road, Danny became involved with the street paper (known then as Spare Change), where he found the support he needed to stay clean.

“I really had no outlet until I started selling the paper. It gave me the chance to interact and socialize with people and to turn my life around,” says Danny. “The people at the street paper made me feel good about myself. They treated me like a worthwhile person so I started right then and there and have been doing it ever since.”

For Danny, selling Megaphone provides more than just a livelihood.

“I have been able to stay in recovery [and it’s been] 12 years since my last drink and 25 years drug free and the magazine has contributed greatly to my success. It helps me live a healthier lifestyle. I feel good about myself now. I have ideas about the future and plan to continue along the road that I’m on.”

“I’m 46-years-old and was born and raised in Ottawa, Ontario. I came to Vancouver in 2002. I was going to transition to Victoria, but when those employment options fell through I ended up in Vancouver, taking security jobs. Struggling to find housing, I moved to the Downtown Eastside and from there, fell in love with the community.

“One day I saw [another vendor] selling the street paper and that sparked my interest. I became involved with the paper and have been very proud to participate since then.

“I think poverty and homelessness in Vancouver is fixable. We have the ability to change people’s lives so that they don’t have to face those life situations. As one person I can’t change the world, but if I start by changing one person’s life then I change their world and my world.

“[As a vendor] I feel very encouraged by the compassion shown by the people here in Vancouver. That customers are willing to reach out and make that personal connection is great. I’d like to sincerely thank all those people who have stopped and talked to me. People who have taken the time out of their lives to make that connection, not just with me, but with all our vendors."

Having travelled extensively around Europe selling encyclopaedias, Richard is settled in Vancouver and has been selling street papers for eight years. Known for his trademark beret, warm laugh and boom box that blasts jazz music Richard says the best part of selling the paper has been the chance to meet so many nice people everyday.

If you've ever strolled around Granville Island to mix with the tourists and seagulls, chance are you've come across Megaphone vendor Vince, who sells the paper outside the popular Public Market. Vince, who is a big Jack Nicholson fan, says he enjoys working on Granville Island, where there's a friendly atmosphere and a good mix of people and cultures.

The Downtown Eastside resident, who also write some eye-popping articles for Megaphone about the neighbourhood's grittier side, says it's not easy to stand outside all day and sell the paper, but he enjoys meeting and talking with new people every day. "Getting to know the customers is a huge reward," says Vince.

I was born in Vancouver nearly 57 years ago. As a kid, I spent 14 years in Vancouver, and then ten years in Winnipeg before coming back. I’ve done various jobs over the years—dishwashing, short order cook, parking lot attendant.

"I went on stress leave for nine months in 1993 and I read about the street paper—it was called Spare Change back then—in The Province. I was on [Unemployment Insurance] at the time and thought I’d give selling the paper a try.

“I’d buy the paper in those days for 20 cents and then sell it on the street. I wasn’t making much money in those days, but I was happy with what I was doing because it meant getting out in the fresh air. I don’t like being inside that much.

“The best thing about selling the paper is the friendships I make. I’m in a very friendly neighbourhood; the merchants and customers are great—they support the paper and are always nice to me. I go out to coffee with several of them. They come to my house parties and my birthday parties. They protect me from panhandlers taking my turf.

“When I’m not selling the paper, I like to take walks and I’m heavy into my Gunsmoke and my DVD collection. I also write for the paper. Writing makes me feel good. I enjoy writing about friends, family and the police.

“I think homelessness is deplorable and that the Campbell government should start showing some compassion towards its people. Some panhandlers are bad, but many have personality and are friendly.

“I plan to sell the paper until it’s time to collect my pension. I’m just glad that Megaphone is going around. I’d be sitting around the apartment if I didn’t sell the paper.”

“I like selling Megaphone—it helps the poor and by selling the paper I’m helping educate people about poverty and the Downtown Eastside. I’ve been in sales most of my life. I like dealing and talking with people from all over the world. And I get that opportunity with Megaphone.

“I was born in Vancouver. I’m 63-years-old and on disability. Selling the paper helps supplement my income. You don’t get that much on disability; you only get enough to survive. This way I can also help my daughter and grandson.

“I went to jail in 1976 for drugs. But I haven't been in trouble for 30 years. I went on methadone for four years and now I don’t have any desire to take any opiates of any kind—not even Tylenol 3s. I don’t have that voice in my head saying ‘I need more heroin’ and I want to keep it that way. People need to try and understand that a lot of the drug use down here is because people live in such poverty. Getting high takes away their problems for a few minutes.

“To help people get clean you gotta have a program that educates, houses and feeds them. I’m talking about employment education. You gotta change their situation. People don’t have hope down here—you gotta give them some hope.

“I just want to say thank you very much to my customers. I appreciate your support, Megaphone appreciates it and the people down here appreciate it.”

"I was raised in Boston Bar. I went to college in Kamloops, which was just a small community too, so there wasn’t much opportunity for work. I took a carpentry course up there and then I moved to Vancouver.

“I was working here as a carpenter for about 25 years when I broke my leg in five places. I couldn’t do any heavy lifting after that. I couldn’t work in the construction trade anymore.

“I also lost some of my family around that time and went into a stage of alcoholism that was very hard on myself and the people I loved. I started drinking because the loss of my family members was very painful. My drinking was so heavy that I got to a point where I was homeless.

“After that I had to recover from my drinking because I had to let my family go on too, and learn to think of the memories I had with them. As time passed, I quit drinking and I turned to Megaphone.

“Selling the paper got me on a different path, where I could look forward instead of back. It got my mind going and I could try and get myself back on the right track. Now I have a small place I’m renting with my brother and I like to spend time with my nephews and my sister on weekends. We walk around Stanley Park and that keeps me happy and going.

“I like selling the paper because it gives me a chance to meet people that have positive views and give me that extra potential and help build me up. I also get to meet people from different parts of the country and the world.

“I’d like to thank all the readers that buy Megaphone for helping support the paper and me because it helps me out financially and makes me feel good that
that they care.”

“I was born in Vancouver, but I was educated in the States and I’ve travelled the States and Canada a lot. I came back home to spend the rest of my years in
Vancouver.I used to own an ATM company, but a bad series of events—a bad marriage, basically—happened and I lost my company and ended up homeless.

“About six years ago, I got myself on disability, but that wasn’t quite enough. I heard about Megaphone from another person who was selling it and they were making money. I thought selling the paper was quite fun so I started too. It’s a means to subsidize my income—have a little extra spending cash.

“Selling the paper gives me the opportunity to deal with people one-on-one in the public. I’m not panhandling, I actually have a vested interest in what I’m selling and I like talking to people, so it’s a great avenue for me to communicate and tell people what’s going on with me and the city.

“I think homelessness in this city needs to be addressed. When they’re spending the amount of money they’re spending on the Olympics, that money should also go towards homelessness. They could have taken care the homeless with that Olympics money.

“The thing about Canada is that people here are a forgiving group. They’re willing to give people a second chance and this is my second chance—getting my act together again and by having this extra revenue source I’m able to live a little better, eat a little better and it gives me self-esteem.

“What I want my customers to know about me is that I’m a worthwhile person and I’d like to have the opportunity to make something of myself and this is the start of it.”

"I just started selling Megaphone this year. I’ve been pretty successful and have been getting some pretty good tips. I read the magazine first so I can talk to my customers about what’s in it. I also learn a lot from the magazine myself.

“What I like most about selling Megaphone is just getting out there, meeting people. It brings your spirits up. I also like going to different areas of Vancouver that I don’t usually go to. I think that’s important, because you should get to know other people from other communities and they should get to know you so they can get through the stereotypes of the Downtown Eastside.

“I sell Megaphone and the Hope in Shadows calendar with my partner and two brothers. When one of us gets tired of standing on the corner, one of the others will take over. We call it a tag-team.

“I was born and raised in Smithers. The Hudson Bay Mountain was part of my dad’s clan. So that mountain was our hunting ground, our trapline and our fishing, before it got taken over.

“It’s pretty racist around Smithers. I grew up with that racism from the day I was born until I left. Back in the ’80s, there was a land claims case going on, and that’s when the racism really reared its ugly head. People were going around beating up natives walking on the street.

“It’s still like that, maybe not as bad, but it’s still there. That was one of the main reasons I left. There’s no getting away from it in a small town, you run into the same idiots everyday. Plus all my friends were moving out of Smithers, looking for work.

“I’ve been living in the Downtown Eastside off-and-on since 1985. I tell people when I’m selling Megaphone that everything the media portrays about the neighbourhood is always negative. But there are a lot of women down here trying to help themselves. And not everybody is a drug addict, or a sex trade worker. There are healthy families down here and healthy people.

“There’s a lot of good people in Vancouver, a lot of generous people, and I just want to thank them. A lot of times I end up talking to my customers about whatever goes on down here and they give me their point of view and I learn from that. And they learn from what I have to say also.”