“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.”