Homeless man who returned £7500 cheque he found burst into tears after being offered life-changing reward
The heartfelt story of a homeless man who found a five-figure cheque on the street before returning it to its owner is one of those feel-good stories that can restore your faith in humanity.
Elmer Alvarez was without a home when he stumbled upon the huge cash value, and while many would have taken it for themselves, he chose to seek out its rightful owner.
Like several others in his position, Elmer has fought drug addiction, mental illness and has a criminal record.
But that's not who he is anymore, after he made the decision to turn his life around just three years before finding the lost cheque.
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Recalling the day that he found it, he revealed the first thing that he thought was, 'I got to look for this person,' as the thought of getting it cashed didn't even cross his mind.
Speaking to CBS News, Elmer added: "It never crossed my mind because I made a decision to turn my life over. I've been clean for three years."
He enlisted the help of a friend to call the phone number on the back, which is how he tracked her down, explaining to WTNH: "I was just thinking about how that person was feeling by losing an amount of a cheque like that, an amount of money like that.
"I'd be feeling kind of desperate."
He finally managed to get in touch with the owner, Roberta Hoskie, a real estate broker in New Haven, Connecticut, USA.
She then recorded her meeting with the mystery man, later admitting that she 'expected to find a guy all nice, clean shaven and blue suit,' but after meeting him, 'it shattered the stereotypes'.
Roberta offered him a reward straight away, causing him to burst into tears. But that wasn't all that she did for the good samaritan.
Following their first meeting, she helped him find an apartment and kindly covered his rent for seven months until he could manage himself, while also putting him through real estate school.
The pair began working together on a real estate project that wouldn't make them any money, but it is something considered to be morally enriching.
They planned to build a transitional house for homeless teenagers and young adults, providing services to them that Elmer says are crucial.
"I know what it is to be homeless. Nobody deserves to live like that," he highlighted, with Roberta also agreeing with him.
Now, she is behind a multi-million dollar real estate company, as well as a foundation, a real estate brokerage and a real estate school, but she revealed that she came from a similar background to Elmer.
"He had no idea who the person was behind the check," Roberta explained.
"He didn’t know that I was a single mother. I at one point was on welfare. At one point found myself homeless."
Elmer also admitted that giving the cheque back and seeing Roberta happy was better than the cash, and that he would do it all over again.
Roberta added: "There need to be more people like Elmer Alvarez. He's a golden heart guy. He's a phenomenal guy."
Roberta founded Outreach Foundation as a non-profit organisation to help with providing affordable housing for low and moderate income families, which has purchased a two-family home to help 15 people.
She appointed Alvarez as an advisor at the house, and opened up on her relationship with the man in her book, Poverty Curse Broken: The Roberta Hoskie Story, which came out in 2021.
In a post on Instagram, she said as part of a promotion for her book: "I share the true story of Elmer Alvarez, the homeless man who found my lost cheque for over 10,000 in my book from my perspective, I share what media didn’t."
Joshua Nair