Many of us take the everyday things we have for granted, such as the ability to open our fridge and find some kind of food inside.
But, when you’re homeless and hungry, even something as cheap as a burger from the dollar menu is a luxury.
And pizza?
Well that’s only something that New York City’s famed “pizza rat” is lucky enough to take off with.
However, this homeless woman struck gold when this cop stopped by to share a slice of his pie.
In a photo that’s now gone viral, Chris Barnes shared a heartwarming photo that his girlfriend, Cassie Lea Parker, snapped on her lunch break.
“Cassie was out on her lunch break and observed Goldsboro’s Finest enjoying lunch with a homeless person. Law enforcement does so much for our community, with a lot of it going unnoticed. We see you Goldsboro P.D. Keep up the good work.”
At a time when people are acting like it’s every man for himself, this sweet moment of a cop sharing his lunch with a homeless woman helps to redeem the human race.
Officer Michael Rivers has spent the last nine years with the Goldsboro Police Department in North Carolina, and that time has been spent wisely.
Not one to turn a blind eye, he’s come to know the faces, if not always the names, of all the homeless folks living on the streets in his community.
But on the day that photo was taken, Officer Rivers saw a homeless woman he’d never seen before.
The shirt she was wearing caught his eye. It read: “Homeless. The fastest way of becoming a nobody.”
She wasn’t a nobody, and he wasn’t going to stand for that nonsense!
Since the windows on his cruiser were down, he made eye contact with her and that’s when the two acknowledged each other with a casual “Hey.”
The 29-year-old officer started to drive away, but he felt something tugging at him to go back to her.
He told CNN:
“God put it on my heart to get her lunch. So I turned around and I asked her, ‘Hey, did you eat today?’ And she said, ‘No.'”
So what did he do?
He jetted off to a nearby pizza joint and grabbed both a pepperoni and cheese pizza, since he didn’t know what she liked.
The woman, who identified herself as Michelle, was his unlikely lunch date for the next 45 minutes.
Somewhere between biting into slices of pepperoni and cheese, the two shared their life stories.
After the photo was posted on Facebook, the heartfelt comments kept flying!
@Tinks Gill wrote:
“Learn from this beautiful interaction. Acknowledge the homeless, don’t forget they’re people just like you and me. There’s nothing wrong with a warm smile and a friendly hello. A little chit-chat doesn’t hurt either.”
It’s not just social media where people have been sharing the love.
Some people have gone old school and actually sent Officer Rivers hand-written letters!
“Letters that were sent to me today in reference the Facebook post by Cassie Lea Parker and CNN. A lot of People have been reaching out and it’s so amazing to see what one picture has done. #spreadthelove”
So the next time you see someone in need on the street, remember they’re a person just like you and me.
Please SHARE this with your friends and family.
