Coy Featherston, 66, was homeless until a few weeks ago when he was reunited with old high-school friends with kind hearts.
About a month ago, the Austin American Statesman published an article on homelessness and they used a photo of Coy, identifying him in the caption. Leea Mechling, an old school friend of Featherston’s recognized the name- as she said, if not for the caption, she would have never recognized her high-school friend.
That was when she decided to look for him on the streets of Austin. It took her three days until she spotted him in the doorway of St. Austin Catholic Church near UT’s campus. She went up to him and said “Hi, Coy! It’s Leea, do you remember me?” Featherston did remember her and, as he admitted, he was relieved because it was someone that he knew.
Leea decided to put him up at her place for some days. In the meantime, she communicated with several other old classmates, who had also been Coy’s friends back in the day. They were shocked to find out that an old friend, had been living in the same town as a homeless man for decades.
The group of friends arranged everything for Featherston, from social security to a place to live. For the time being, he’s living with Don Vanderburg and, according to the latter, “he can stay there as long as he wants”.
The good thing is that Featherston isn’t facing any drug or alcohol issues, what brought him to live on the streets was apparently a series of unfortunate events and some mental health issues. He used to work as a graphic artist, but at some point, in the 90s, he became homeless in Atlanta and, over time, he ended up in the Austin area.
“I don’t know if I’d have really gotten through without my friends.”
Featherston used to be a happy teenager, a keen football player and a handsome boy, who was even voted “Best All-Around Boy” in high-school. He used to be everyone’s friend, but somehow, at some point, he lost everything. However, thanks to this old bunch of friends he’s not hopeless anymore. He has a home, people around him who care for him, and would do “anything it takes to turn this around”.
His friends even launched a GoFundMe page, through which they very quickly collected more than $18,000. Coy will be able to use this money to find himself a home and build his life again.
“Make friends now, you may need them some day. You will be glad that you have them. Because it can happen to anyone.”
If there is one message this story conveys, that is you should build strong bonds with people and make long-lasting relationships because people need friends to go through life, they need people who will always be there to support and care for them. You never know when it will be your turn to ask for help, so be kind and generous in your life.
Please SHARE this with your friends and family.
