The heartwarming story of the NYC cop who bought a pair of boots for a barefoot homeless man has taken a sobering twist. Turns out, Jeffrey Hillman actually has an apartment in the Bronx, and he wasn't as touched by the gesture as the rest of us. In fact, you might say he's a touch bitter.
According to an article in the Huffington Post, 54-year-old Hillman acquired the apartment via a housing program that helps homeless veterans. He has apparently been reluctant to accept help from family members and outreach services.
It didn't take long for photos of unsuspecting good samaritan New York Police Officer Larry DePrimo to go viral. But Hillman has since been found barefoot once again, having hidden the boots because "they are worth a lot of money.”
He was allegedly also looking for "a piece of the pie" from photos posted on the Internet "without his permission."
I've seen this kind of reaction before, and it's disheartening. When a friend offered her store-bought lunch to a homeless man, he sneered and refused. My husband's $20 bill was rejected by another whose running shoes were threadbare.
Clearly a pair of boots isn't going to solve the complex problem of homelessness. But it's a start.
As New York Magazine writer Adam Martin put it:
"[Hillman's behaviour] doesn't make DePrimo's action any less generous. And it doesn't make it any less of a good example. We'd much rather live in a world where people are inclined to do nice things for strangers than in one where everybody's a jerk because they're afraid of getting scammed."
What do you make of this story?
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