Willie Boyd, a disabled Air Force Veteran, put his trust and rent money in the hands of his apartment manager. Willie saw her not only as his apartment manager but as his friend. That was until he found out she had taken half of his money every month for herself.
Willie Boyd has lived at the same apartment complex for over six years and always paid his rent on time. After suffering a stroke, his mobility became limited and that is when his apartment manager stepped in to help. She offered to take his bank card to a nearby ATM and withdraw his rent money for him.
“I trusted her. She would come back with no receipt. I would check to see if the money was taken out,” said Boyd.
Willie has been on a fixed income for years. His rent has been $600 and the apartment manager was helpful, he thought, in withdrawing this money on the first of every month for him.
“This is an elderly man. He is kind-hearted he will give his last to anybody,” his daughter-in-law, Rogeena Johnson-Hames stated.
Once she left her job and a new apartment manager was hired, Willie was given a notice that stated he owed $2,240 back in rent and its relating fees. Along with the hefty bill he was notified he only had five days to pay. This shocked Willie, as he believed his rent was always being paid.
“I blame myself because I gave her my card. You don’t give nobody your money card, and I know that, but I trusted that lady,” Boyd said.
Willie asked his family for help in understanding what had gone wrong. After reviewing his payment history, they realized she would only pay half of his $600 rent every month and she took the other half for herself.
“It hurt me, hurt me to my heart. I thought she was my friend. We talked every day, we talked,” Boyd said.
Willie’s daughter in law, Rogeena Johnson-Hames, was heartbroken for Willie. Rogeena reached out to her local news station, KFOR-TV, to spread Willie’s story to the public. KFOR-TV ran a segment about Willie’s situation, who was still only blaming himself.
A non-profit organization that watched this segment was Veterans Corner. Veterans Corner’s goal is to provide help for veterans through a variety of avenues. After hearing about Willie’s situation, they reached out to the news station in hopes they could help.
“This story here hit me in the heart. This is what we’re here for,” agreed Veterans Corner volunteer Art Sipes.
KFOR-TV was able to connect Veterans Corner with Willie’s apartment complex. In doing so, Veterans Corner arrived in person to completely pay Willie’s back rent and fees in full. This moment brought Jerry Baxter, Veteran Corner’s Treasurer, to almost tears as he handed the check to Willie and his family.
Willie was brought to tears as well as his faith in humanity was restored. Willie thanked Veteran Corners for this surprising act by strangers. Willie spoke about Veterans Corner and stated, “I know people are compassionate, but I never thought it would come to me like that. That’s why God is good.”
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