This Man Walks Past a Homeless Person Every Day, Unsure of Who He Is

It seems normal for people to ignore random homeless people on the street, but things aren’t always what they seem!

Jimmy, a baseball prodigy, walked past the same homeless man each day without paying attention to him. Apparently, he had other things on his mind. However, that was actually Jimmy’s biggest mistake in life. Who was the guy? Why was he important before he became homeless?

Markus was the homeless man and was shocked to see a crowd of people in fancy dresses and suits forming around him. He was wearing the clothes he’d slept in yesterday while on the street. What had happened?

Homeless Among the Rich

Out of the crowd, a man stepped forward, and he appeared to be quite important. Markus had seen him on the LA streets before, but he didn’t know who he was. The man seemed to know about him, though!

The Unknown Man Approached Markus

When the man introduced himself, Markus realized who he was. Markus was a mysterious man who had been living on the LA streets for about 15 years. He looks like all other homeless people, but deeper digging shows that’s far from the truth.

Meet Markus

Markus was notorious for hiding his past and keeping it a secret. Many people have asked about it, but he gave not one word from his lips. This led the other homeless people to freely speculate about his situation and why he was there.

Secretive Past

Theories range from Markus being a criminal and hiding from the law in plain sight to being a millionaire who lost everything in a huge scandal. No one knew the truth, and Markus wasn’t willing to answer yet.

They Liked Him

Though no one really knew about Markus, most took a liking to him. Markus spends a lot of time selling his paintings. They might not show skill or quality, but people appreciate that he’s not just begging for money and is trying to offer something in return.

The Painter

Markus developed a love of painting while on the street. He created a makeshift house from an abandoned warehouse and lived there with other homeless. The place had been empty for many years, and the city never did anything about it.

An Old Warehouse

The warehouse owners went out of business because of financial problems. The city tried buying it cheaply, thinking the seller had no other options. However, the business owner was offended and decided to open it up for the homeless population.

The Homeless

In the storage rooms, Markus found painting supplies and canvases. No one else was interested, so he kept them. After becoming homeless, Markus wanted to have a new passion because his old one had collapsed.

Good Paintings

Sometimes, his paintings sold like hotcakes, and he made more money than the other homeless people living there. To make sure that they didn’t steal, Markus wanted to keep people on his side and came up with a good plan.

Good Money

Markus often brought food and supplies to the warehouse so that others could use them. That way, he was becoming popular with the neighborhood locals and his peers. However, that popularity brought even more questions.

Sharing Is the Plan

Everyone wanted to know his story. How did he end up living on the street? What was his life like before? However, Markus was reluctant to talk about it. Most people didn’t continuously bother him, so it wasn’t that big of a deal.

A Special Person

One day, someone didn’t ask but knew Markus’ story. Jimmy was 22 years old and lived in LA all his life. Though he came from humble beginnings, he’d built a name for himself and was popular with the people. However, he had different reasons than Markus for that.

Meet Jimmy

Jimmy was a baseball prodigy with the Los Angeles Dodgers, so everyone expected him to break into the team. The LA baseball fans were so excited to have a local prospect on the books, so everyone was a fan of the young man.

Financial Gain

Such a level of performance and fame came with substantial financial compensation. However, Jimmy had grown up in foster care, being left at a small Los Angeles orphanage as a baby with no information about his parents or why they left him. He lived there throughout his childhood.

Being the Orphan

Jimmy was lucky enough to get a family with two foster parents. However, they were poor, so there wasn’t much money left for non-essential things or activities. In fact, everything focuses on survival, and this had a major effect on the boy.

Living on the Street

For a while, the foster parents and Jimmy lived on the streets. They couldn’t afford rent, and government assistance took too long. Finally, their care was taken by a local government representative, so they got help quickly. Still, life was rough for the family.

Getting Help

Baseball was the only thing that helped Jimmy through the rough days. His parents couldn’t get him onto a team to train and play, but he enjoyed being with the other kids. In fact, he had more heart than all the other boys and enjoyed the game immensely.

Being Scouted

A local club scouted Jimmy one day. That rarely happens for those not in a league. However, now that he was recognized, Jimmy could join the team without paying anything, even receiving his equipment for free. This was a once-in-a-lifetime chance, and Jimmy knew he couldn’t waste it!

The One Chance

Jimmy managed to make a good impression with the team and the local club-goers. Soon, he was turning heads from other scouts. However, now it was professional teams that wanted to see him in action. He had made it to the big leagues!

LA Dodgers

A representative from the LA dodgers approached the trainer, Jimmy, and his foster parents to offer him a professional contract. About 10 years later, he was still with the club and was about to join a team. His bank account filled up fast, but that wasn’t enough.

10 Years Later

Jimmy was feeling guilty about the money and success he was earning. He was just doing what he loved. Therefore, he wanted to repay the faith and blessing he had found in his life. An idea quickly came to him, and he knew it was right.

Doing More and Giving Back

The prodigy usually walked to the training each day, and it only took 20 minutes. He had been noticing something for a while. There were more homeless people. Clearly, the economic situation was unstable, and Jimmy knew he could make a difference in his city!

Helping the Homeless

Immediately, Jimmy talked to an LA Dodgers marketing executive about what they could do for the homeless around the city center. He loved the idea, seeing as Jimmy had been homeless for a while and thought it could be a great publicity stunt. They crafted an idea together!

Help from the LA Dodgers

They organized a benefit for the homeless population. The baseball players and other high-society members made charitable donations. Everyone was excited, and the teammates agreed to be there to boost their images. This night was sure to be a success!

Excited People

Everything was ready, so they had to invite the homeless people. This night was all about them, but they seemed to be a low priority for the organizers. However, Jimmy chose to invite them personally, though his offer wasn’t as positively received as he expected.

Disbelief

Most homeless people disregarded him as creating a marketing ploy. They turn their backs the moment the camera goes off. Therefore, it took a lot of convincing to get a few homeless people to agree. If nothing else, it was a free dinner for them. Then, someone told Jimmy to invite people from one area.

Trying to Convince Them

He was told about the warehouse outside the city center. The people he spoke with said that many homeless people were now living there. It might be a great place to start and center the benefit event around that place.

The Old Warehouse

The marketing department decided to make this place more livable for the homeless people. In their eyes, this was the evidence that showed their good intentions. They could point to it for many years. Jimmy showed up that afternoon to get a glance.

Renovations

To Jimmy’s surprise, the homeless people were excited about the idea. They promised to bring as many people as possible to that event. In fact, they agreed to convince the other inhabitants of the building who weren’t there right then.

Sell the Paintings

They started talking about the man who painted for a living as a homeless person. After asking, they said his name was Markus. Jimmy recognized the name from the past, but he didn’t try to place it. Shortly afterward, he left, with the homeless saying they could try to convince Markus to attend.

Recognition

Markus arrived back at the warehouse later that night, and the others told him. He wasn’t very pleased about the event and claimed he didn’t want to show up. However, his friends were so excited about it that he decided to stop worrying and join them.

Rich Customers

Since the event was in a few weeks, Markus took the time to create new paintings. He hoped to use the money to ensure that the others at the warehouse improved their lives. He painted night and day, using up most of the supplies he had.

The Many Paintings

On the evening of the event, Markus and some other homeless people at the warehouse took them to the location. They had to walk a long time, so moving all the paintings was a huge undertaking. However, it turned out to be worth all the hassle for many reasons!

A Beautiful Venue

The LA Dodgers made sure it was all done right. The hotel event lounge was gorgeous. Markus and the others arrived early to set up the paintings. Soon, Markus was the talk of the night, and the paintings sold fast. However, one man hadn’t seen the work.

The Delay

Jimmy was late because of personal issues. When he arrived, everyone was raving about the star. He went to where Markus was located to see his paintings. After weaving through an endless crowd, he was face-to-face with Markus. As he looked in his eyes, his draw dropped.

Meeting Markus

The baseball player had seen Markus on his way to practice but hadn’t recognized him. Now that he was looking in his eyes, it all seemed to click. However, Markus didn’t have the same reaction. When they started talking, Markus finally realized that they knew each other!

A Clueless Markus

Markus was actually the first baseball coach for Jimmy at the club where he was scouted. At the time, he did it as a side job for a friend. He worked hard with Jimmy because the kid was motivated and showed obvious talent. Then, Markus told other scouts to check him out, which was why he got to the pro leagues.

Very Important

Time hadn’t been very kind to Markus. After that, he lost his job and couldn’t continue coaching. Then, his girlfriend left, and he wound up on the street. Some might argue that he was relatively successful because of his painting skills.

A Life Drastically Changed

Jimmy wanted to buy a house for Markus and get him a job coaching with the LA Dodgers, but the man declined. He was comfortable in his new life and had made many great friends at the warehouse. However, he still wanted one thing.

Only One Thing

Markus wanted the event promise to be kept so that the warehouse was habitable for the homeless. That way, he could live with his friends but improve their lives with his painting skills and the LA Dodgers to help. The renovations were underway quickly, and Markus was on the street again to sell his paintings and hang out with friends, just like he wanted!