Those who are homeless know what it’s like to deal with struggles at every turn.
When a person doesn’t have a roof over their head, they may easily find themselves falling victim to circumstances. Cold weather becomes a serious problem. Finding work can be difficult when you have no way to make yourself presentable or store clothing. Money comes and goes quickly along with one’s daily needs, making it difficult to save—or to pull oneself out of the situation at hand.
Sometimes, it takes a lucky break to flip things around—which is what happened to one man in Chicago.
The story began over 30 years ago in Junction City, Kansas at a small place called Jack and Dick’s Pawn Shop.
The store is currently owned and operated by Chris Mathis, after his father before him. After looking around the store one day, he found a drawerful of savings bonds that had never been cashed.
Mathis took it upon himself to return all of those bonds to their rightful owners—though he was having trouble tracking down one man named Woodrow Wilson Jr (or Woody for short). Though he only had one photo to go by, Mathis was determined.
With the help of local journalists, Mathis was able to track Wilson down in Chicago.
As it turned out, Wilson was a US Army veteran who had been homeless for approximately three years.
When the local WGNTV news team finally tracked him down, they showed him a photo of the old savings bonds, which he had pawned as a young man decades before. But he was in for a huge surprise. The bonds, originally bought for him by his aunt Rubbie Mae, had matured.
Though the bonds were only worth few hundred dollars at the time, they were now worth $3,000 – and the pawnshop owner wanted Wilson to have them back.
Needless to say, the vet was very grateful to hear the news. It was a huge amount, but for someone that was struggling out on the street – it would be especially life-changing.
He explained:
“It means a lot, because I don’t have nothing. It’s going to really help me.”
As many people probably know, winters in Chicago can be unforgiving. For his part, Wilson said that the shelters had been very crowded—but the money would help him stay off the streets for the entire winter. Mathis was also relieved that he had seen his task through:
“I’ve been staring at these bonds with his name for years . . . I started thinking I’d never be able to get them back to him. Hearing his voice on the phone today was more than I could have hoped for. Made it all worth it.”
Life is full of ups and downs, but it’s hard to imagine how difficult it would be without a warm place to sleep at night. Fortunately, things were going to get a little better for Wilson, all thanks to one pawnshop owner’s kindness.
Watch the video below to see Wilson’s reaction to the incredible news!
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