Latest / Aired Out / Homelessness, drugs, street-life in Barre VT and overcoming odds. Yes, attitude IS everything.

Transcript

Homelessness, drugs, street-life in Barre VT and overcoming odds. Yes, attitude IS everything. · Aired Out

• 0:53
  Speaker 1: All right, this is the week to see a movie.
• 0:57
  Speaker 1: Get to the Paramount Twin right here in the Granite
• 1:01
  Speaker 1: City or the Capitol Showplace in Montpelier. It's a $ 5
• 1:08
  Speaker 1: movie night at the Paramount in Barrie tonight. Five bucks.
• 1:13
  Speaker 1: And I know it's a tiny theater and there's only
• 1:17
  Speaker 1: two movies playing, but you get to pick. Go. Get out.
• 1:21
  Speaker 1: Five bucks for a ticket. And I should probably tell
• 1:25
  Speaker 1: you that tomorrow is $ 5 movie night over at the
• 1:29
  Speaker 1: Capitol Showplace, too. So you've got your choice between today
• 1:32
  Speaker 1: and tomorrow. But do get out and see a movie.
• 1:35
  Speaker 1: Today's forecast is perfect movie weather. Cloudy skies, maybe some
• 1:41
  Speaker 1: rain showers this morning, maybe some breaks of sunshine later today,
• 1:45
  Speaker 1: and 60 degrees for the daytime high, which is pretty
• 1:49
  Speaker 1: much right about where we are now, either side of it. Tonight,
• 1:55
  Speaker 1: some clouds down around 38. You're not telling me that
• 2:00
  Speaker 1: I'm going to have to cover up the tomatoes at
• 2:05
  Speaker 1: any point soon, are you? Tomorrow, Tuesday, few clouds early
• 2:12
  Speaker 1: on other than otherwise sunshine around 65. Gino sitting right
• 2:18
  Speaker 1: next to me on the curvy couch. Gino, how the
• 2:21
  Speaker 1: hell are you?
• 2:22
  Speaker 2: Come on in.
• 2:23
  Speaker 1: You're such a badass. I absolutely freaking adore you.
• 2:34
  Speaker 2: I adore you too.
• 2:36
  Speaker 1: You are so, so well known. You are literally a
• 2:42
  Speaker 1: damn rock star in this community.
• 2:47
  Speaker 2: Well, I don't know about rock star.
• 2:48
  Speaker 1: Oh, no. You are definitely.
• 2:51
  Speaker 2: No, no, no. Pastor Ray said I should be mayor.
• 2:54
  Speaker 1: You should be. You should be.
• 2:57
  Speaker 2: I don't know if I want to get into politics, but.
• 3:02
  Speaker 1: Gino, you just are... You're so... You're kind of like
• 3:08
  Speaker 1: a streetwise mentor.
• 3:14
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I grew up in the streets, so.
• 3:15
  Speaker 1: I know you did. And what streets primarily? Right here
• 3:20
  Speaker 1: in Barrie?
• 3:21
  Speaker 2: Well, some of them was in Lowland, Boston. Okay. But
• 3:25
  Speaker 2: I also, in Barry, I, you know, was homeless, so
• 3:29
  Speaker 2: I walked the streets.
• 3:30
  Speaker 1: Yeah. You've had a very rough life.
• 3:34
  Speaker 2: Very.
• 3:35
  Speaker 1: And you've, like, name it, and you've lived it, pretty much.
• 3:45
  Speaker 1: Drug use?
• 3:46
  Speaker 2: Yes. Long time ago, though. Drug addiction?
• 3:49
  Speaker 1: Drug addiction?
• 3:50
  Speaker 2: Long time ago.
• 3:52
  Speaker 1: Booze?
• 3:53
  Speaker 2: Not anymore.
• 3:56
  Speaker 1: Homelessness?
• 3:57
  Speaker 2: Not anymore. 11 years.
• 3:59
  Speaker 1: 11 years.
• 4:01
  Speaker 2: Years of not being homeless.
• 4:06
  Speaker 1: You know everybody.
• 4:09
  Speaker 2: Just about, and I think they all know me.
• 4:11
  Speaker 1: Here in Barry. When you walk down this street, you are...
• 4:18
  Speaker 1: I'm going to say it. I'm going to say the words.
• 4:23
  Speaker 1: You're the godfather. Everyone knows you. They honk. They wave.
• 4:28
  Speaker 1: I know.
• 4:29
  Speaker 2: I got my ring to prove it.
• 4:32
  Speaker 1: What's the story with that? What? What's the story with
• 4:35
  Speaker 1: the ring?
• 4:36
  Speaker 2: Well, I like crosses.
• 4:38
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 4:38
  Speaker 2: But I found this one online and it's a cross
• 4:42
  Speaker 2: with a shield around it. Okay. And when I first
• 4:44
  Speaker 2: got it and I wore my godfather shirt and my
• 4:48
  Speaker 2: I call it like a mafia hat. Yeah.
• 4:51
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 4:51
  Speaker 2: I said, I am the Godfather. Please kiss my ring.
• 4:56
  Speaker 2: They had to throw something funny in there.
• 4:58
  Speaker 1: You know, you've had some pretty good health issues, too,
• 5:05
  Speaker 1: that you've overcome. You've overcome a lot.
• 5:08
  Speaker 2: Yeah. Last year was pretty bad. I mean, it started
• 5:13
  Speaker 2: with my uncle died. Then a month later, my aunt died.
• 5:16
  Speaker 2: A month later, my nephew died. It's South Carolina. I
• 5:20
  Speaker 2: had my gallbladder taken out. I was in ICU for
• 5:23
  Speaker 2: over a week with pneumonia. Then I had bronchitis.
• 5:27
  Speaker 1: Yeah, you had bronchitis.
• 5:28
  Speaker 2: And then my mom, you know, has a lot of health.
• 5:32
  Speaker 2: I mean, she just turned 89.
• 5:32
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 5:33
  Speaker 2: And she's got a bad leg, so she falls a lot.
• 5:37
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 5:37
  Speaker 2: She had a knee replacement, one of them, a couple
• 5:39
  Speaker 2: of years ago. But she doesn't want to do the
• 5:42
  Speaker 2: other one. She says she's 89. And I think her
• 5:45
  Speaker 2: dementia is getting worse.
• 5:49
  Speaker 1: You're carrying a lot of weight.
• 5:52
  Speaker 2: And that one thing with my brother.
• 5:53
  Speaker 1: Yeah, and your brother, he's fighting a wicked fight against cancer.
• 6:01
  Speaker 1: And he lives locally right here.
• 6:03
  Speaker 2: Yeah, not too far from me. So if he needs anything,
• 6:06
  Speaker 2: I just book it over there.
• 6:10
  Speaker 1: You're a lot of things. I just can't put you
• 6:15
  Speaker 1: in a box, Gino. You're a caregiver. You're a caregiver.
• 6:18
  Speaker 1: You are a neighborhood pillar. You're a survivor turned advocate.
• 6:29
  Speaker 1: You're a motivator. You love, literally love your community all
• 6:36
  Speaker 1: walks of life. No matter who they are or what
• 6:41
  Speaker 1: they're doing, you've got a handout. You're offering your heart
• 6:49
  Speaker 1: your time, and often, your shoes.
• 6:54
  Speaker 2: Oh, I did that again this year. My socks and
• 6:56
  Speaker 2: my shoes.
• 6:59
  Speaker 1: You've taken them right off.
• 7:01
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I gave them to him. And then I walked
• 7:04
  Speaker 2: across the street at the fifth store, bought a pair
• 7:06
  Speaker 2: of 25-cent socks and went home.
• 7:10
  Speaker 1: You know, I've told so many people including Pastor Ray
• 7:17
  Speaker 1: over at the Heading Church, which you're very involved with,
• 7:20
  Speaker 1: and we're going to talk about them, that there are,
• 7:24
  Speaker 1: first of all, you and I have been friends for.
• 7:27
  Speaker 2: Oh, my God, 20 years almost.
• 7:30
  Speaker 1: No, more than that.
• 7:31
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I met you when Sherry Lamberton was.
• 7:34
  Speaker 1: Well, that was 2000. Yeah. So 26 years. How do
• 7:35
  Speaker 1: you put up with me? You know, I tell everyone
• 7:45
  Speaker 1: there are few people that I know in this community
• 7:51
  Speaker 1: that have as much empathy as Gino. You've got a
• 7:57
  Speaker 1: massive heart. Does that get in your way sometimes?
• 8:01
  Speaker 2: Sometimes. I mean, when my brother was diagnosed with cancer
• 8:07
  Speaker 2: and I was still out on the streets doing it
• 8:10
  Speaker 2: in church, I loved doing it. I just had to
• 8:13
  Speaker 2: take a week off because I felt like I was
• 8:16
  Speaker 2: getting too overwhelmed.
• 8:17
  Speaker 1: Sure.
• 8:18
  Speaker 2: You know, just a little time for myself, but I
• 8:20
  Speaker 2: didn't like it. I wanted to be out here. Because
• 8:24
  Speaker 2: I don't really, when I'm out on the street, I
• 8:28
  Speaker 2: leave everything I'm going through in my apartment.
• 8:31
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 8:32
  Speaker 2: I come on here to focus on everybody else.
• 8:34
  Speaker 1: I know you do.
• 8:35
  Speaker 2: And, I mean, I think I've always been that way.
• 8:38
  Speaker 2: I mean, I don't tell my story on the street.
• 8:42
  Speaker 2: I listen to their stories.
• 8:45
  Speaker 1: I love that about you.
• 8:46
  Speaker 2: And the thing, I have this policy we talked about
• 8:48
  Speaker 2: the other day. If you're going to sit outside with me,
• 8:52
  Speaker 2: phone's off. You want to talk and you want me
• 8:58
  Speaker 2: to listen and give you advice, I don't want to
• 9:01
  Speaker 2: see you going like this. Because first of all, I
• 9:04
  Speaker 2: have respect for you, you have respect for me. There's
• 9:09
  Speaker 2: three things that I live. And I abide. Respect, honor,
• 9:14
  Speaker 2: and pride. Those are my three things. I respect people.
• 9:20
  Speaker 2: I honor, you know, things that maybe I do or
• 9:24
  Speaker 2: they do. And then I have pride. I have pride
• 9:27
  Speaker 2: in them and then me.
• 9:29
  Speaker 1: If you're just joining us, Gino is my guest this morning.
• 9:37
  Speaker 1: Gino is.
• 9:39
  Speaker 1: So so well known on the streets of barry and
• 9:42
  Speaker 1: frankly beyond i mean even in montpelier i mean just
• 9:46
  Speaker 1: in surrounding communities.
• 9:48
  Speaker 2: And that freiburg fair.
• 9:51
  Speaker 1: You you you have lived a uh a very hard
• 9:57
  Speaker 1: life as we just said. There's been homelessness. There's been
• 10:03
  Speaker 1: drug addiction. You've had lots of health issues. You have
• 10:12
  Speaker 1: overcome so much. And the biggest thing that you are is.
• 10:18
  Speaker 1: You're an advocate for others. You're a hometown hero. You
• 10:21
  Speaker 1: are always looking out for people who live here in Barry.
• 10:28
  Speaker 2: Oh, yeah.
• 10:28
  Speaker 1: Whether they're homeless or not.
• 10:30
  Speaker 2: No, I respect everybody.
• 10:31
  Speaker 1: Everyone.
• 10:32
  Speaker 2: I mean, even, you know, people that are homeless, they
• 10:36
  Speaker 2: walk by and I'll say, hey, good morning, how's your
• 10:38
  Speaker 2: day going?
• 10:39
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 10:40
  Speaker 2: You know what I mean?
• 10:42
  Speaker 1: You are, as I kind of alluded to yesterday, your attitude...
• 10:48
  Speaker 1: is phenomenal. It is, honestly, if there was one word
• 10:57
  Speaker 1: that I could attach to your legacy, it would be attitude.
• 11:07
  Speaker 1: You are so consumed with hope and belief.
• 11:12
  Speaker 2: Yes, you have that belief and you have that faith.
• 11:14
  Speaker 1: You have belief in everyone out there. You say to everyone,
• 11:19
  Speaker 1: I believe that you can get better, be better. I
• 11:24
  Speaker 1: believe that things will be improving for you. You have seen, Gino,
• 11:30
  Speaker 1: some incredible success stories right out here on the streets. Oh, yeah.
• 11:34
  Speaker 1: Like what?
• 11:35
  Speaker 2: Well, about a year, last Heritage Festival, what, a little
• 11:39
  Speaker 2: over a year? Mm-hmm. There was a girl. I don't
• 11:43
  Speaker 2: like to do names.
• 11:44
  Speaker 1: I don't expect. Yeah, of course.
• 11:46
  Speaker 2: And I know her well, and she had her kids
• 11:49
  Speaker 2: that day. And she was looking at her kids, and
• 11:53
  Speaker 2: she was crying. So I sat next to her, put
• 11:56
  Speaker 2: my arm around her, and I said, what's going on?
• 11:58
  Speaker 2: Excuse me. She said, well, I need to stop doing
• 12:01
  Speaker 2: what I'm doing because I want to be with my kids.
• 12:05
  Speaker 2: So we talked for a while. I saw her about
• 12:08
  Speaker 2: a week ago, and she's still clean, a car, living
• 12:12
  Speaker 2: with her kids, and a job. And she thanked me
• 12:16
  Speaker 2: for talking to her that day.
• 12:17
  Speaker 1: A year and a half later.
• 12:20
  Speaker 2: Yeah. She gave me a big hug, told me she
• 12:23
  Speaker 2: loved me.
• 12:28
  Speaker 1: You know, that's relatability, I think, holds a lot of water. Yeah.
• 12:37
  Speaker 1: And when folks can relate to you and you can
• 12:41
  Speaker 1: relate to them, There's real substance to that. It's a
• 12:49
  Speaker 1: different kind of respect and understanding than if someone were
• 12:55
  Speaker 1: fighting the fight against substance use and going to a
• 12:59
  Speaker 1: therapist or a doctor or frankly anyone who hasn't literally
• 13:07
  Speaker 1: walked the walk and talked the talk. People connect with you, Chino.
• 13:14
  Speaker 1: You have an understanding, and they have an understanding of
• 13:17
  Speaker 1: you as well.
• 13:18
  Speaker 2: Well, yeah, because like you said, you know, I've been homeless.
• 13:23
  Speaker 2: I was an addict. I have a therapist. I have
• 13:26
  Speaker 2: a psychiatrist. I have head in church. My best friend
• 13:30
  Speaker 2: Pat was also my advocate now. You know, Pastor Ray,
• 13:34
  Speaker 2: I mean.
• 13:35
  Speaker 1: Yeah. You got people in your corner that are in
• 13:39
  Speaker 1: your circle that love you. Yes. But man, your circle
• 13:42
  Speaker 1: is huge. It's huge.
• 13:46
  Speaker 2: I am.
• 13:47
  Speaker 1: Like I said, every, everybody not only knows you, but
• 13:50
  Speaker 1: they really have a high regard for you. You, you know,
• 13:54
  Speaker 1: just in, in my short time here every day, I
• 13:57
  Speaker 1: see a lot of things out, out this window through
• 14:00
  Speaker 1: the glass. I've seen you a lot. I've seen you
• 14:03
  Speaker 1: when you haven't known that I've, seeing you, and you
• 14:07
  Speaker 1: walk up and down North Main Street, and car after
• 14:11
  Speaker 1: car is tooting the horn and yelling, Gino!
• 14:16
  Speaker 2: I'm like, yo, who are you? I have to.
• 14:23
  Speaker 1: Do you understand what it's like to be hooked on cigarettes?
• 14:29
  Speaker 2: Yeah. I might try to cut down a lot.
• 14:34
  Speaker 1: Especially since the gallbladder came out?
• 14:37
  Speaker 2: Well, since the pneumonia, basically. Well, I quit for like
• 14:41
  Speaker 2: a week. Then I had a couple of days I smoked.
• 14:45
  Speaker 2: Then I quit for four days. Then I went back
• 14:47
  Speaker 2: a couple of days, but now I'm trying again. But
• 14:49
  Speaker 2: you know what? I have to say that this is
• 14:52
  Speaker 2: what I tell people on the street. You know, if
• 14:56
  Speaker 2: you give me a day, no drugs, being clean, I'm
• 15:01
  Speaker 2: proud of you. You know, and it might take them,
• 15:05
  Speaker 2: you know, two times, four times, five times, but give
• 15:09
  Speaker 2: me one day. That's all I'm asking right now is
• 15:13
  Speaker 2: one day. And they've done it. I see when I
• 15:17
  Speaker 2: sit with people, I look at them, we start talking,
• 15:21
  Speaker 2: you're clean and sober today, aren't you?
• 15:25
  Speaker 1: What do you say to your friends or family People
• 15:32
  Speaker 1: who are clean, making some progress, showing some real push
• 15:41
  Speaker 1: forward in the right direction. What do you tell people
• 15:44
  Speaker 1: who want to.
• 15:45
  Speaker 2: You're going to like this one.
• 15:48
  Speaker 1: They might be on the verge of relapse. What do
• 15:52
  Speaker 1: you say to them?
• 15:54
  Speaker 2: I tell them that, you know, first I have to
• 15:56
  Speaker 2: give them The pride and the proudness that I have
• 16:01
  Speaker 2: for them because I did it.
• 16:03
  Speaker 1: You know?
• 16:04
  Speaker 2: But then I tell them that if I hear that
• 16:07
  Speaker 2: you've relapsed, I will go find you. I'm going to
• 16:11
  Speaker 2: throw you on the ground and stomp the living shit
• 16:14
  Speaker 2: out of you. And they think they know I mean it.
• 16:21
  Speaker 1: Yeah, you do.
• 16:22
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I do mean it. Excuse the shit part, but
• 16:28
  Speaker 2: I had to say it. You know, and it's true.
• 16:32
  Speaker 2: I will. And I tell them when I see them,
• 16:35
  Speaker 2: don't forget what I said. I'm not joking.
• 16:39
  Speaker 1: You know what I love about you is that you
• 16:43
  Speaker 1: don't just know these folks. You have conversations with them.
• 16:49
  Speaker 2: Big time about anything.
• 16:51
  Speaker 1: You sit down with these folks, whether you're on the
• 16:54
  Speaker 1: steps somewhere or wherever you are. And you have real
• 16:58
  Speaker 1: conversations with them without any kind of judgment. None. I
• 17:02
  Speaker 1: love that.
• 17:03
  Speaker 2: I don't judge anybody because I don't have a right
• 17:05
  Speaker 2: to judge.
• 17:08
  Speaker 1: What was your feeling? What was running through your mind
• 17:13
  Speaker 1: when Brandon Carbo came in here and sat on that
• 17:17
  Speaker 1: couch right where you're sitting right now?
• 17:20
  Speaker 2: Well, I think, this is my opinion, okay, Gene?
• 17:28
  Speaker 1: Don't worry about G. Don't worry about G.
• 17:32
  Speaker 2: It was a bunch of bullshit. I'm sorry. You know, and...
• 17:38
  Speaker 2: You know, I don't get into the Cabo and all
• 17:41
  Speaker 2: that stuff anymore. That's done and over with. You know,
• 17:44
  Speaker 2: I have to focus on who's out here now. You know,
• 17:48
  Speaker 2: they're important right now. You know, we talk about other things.
• 17:53
  Speaker 2: Not just, you know, addiction. We talk about maybe their life,
• 17:57
  Speaker 2: how their day is going. We tell jokes. We tell
• 18:00
  Speaker 2: funny stories. Just to give them that day not to
• 18:04
  Speaker 2: focus on wanting to go down the street and do something.
• 18:07
  Speaker 2: I'll sit there for hours if I have to. I
• 18:12
  Speaker 2: walk up and down the streets, like you said. You know,
• 18:15
  Speaker 2: I'll go from my house down to Walgreens, back, then
• 18:18
  Speaker 2: I go to the city park, Carrier Park, over by
• 18:21
  Speaker 2: the churches, and then back down that way and then
• 18:24
  Speaker 2: come back up through. And the funny, not funny part,
• 18:28
  Speaker 2: but it's pretty cool. I'll be walking down one side
• 18:31
  Speaker 2: of the sidewalk, and on the other side of the sidewalk,
• 18:34
  Speaker 2: people are yelling to me. Like, all right, one at
• 18:38
  Speaker 2: a time, guys, let's just come over this group together.
• 18:43
  Speaker 1: Why do you think that is?
• 18:46
  Speaker 2: You know, to me, I'm really, I mean, I'm not
• 18:50
  Speaker 2: really sure. I think mostly it's because, you know, I mean,
• 18:54
  Speaker 2: people do listen. But to me, I listen more because,
• 19:02
  Speaker 2: like you said, I've been there. And I want them
• 19:05
  Speaker 2: to get to a part in their life when they
• 19:08
  Speaker 2: can say, I'm done. This is not worth living.
• 19:12
  Speaker 1: Have a life.
• 19:13
  Speaker 2: And I tell them that. Oh, and another thing I
• 19:16
  Speaker 2: tell them, if somebody has a kid or a grandchild,
• 19:22
  Speaker 2: I say to them, This is what I do, and
• 19:26
  Speaker 2: I still do it. My son's 36. Love you, John.
• 19:30
  Speaker 2: And I tell him, when you want to use, take
• 19:33
  Speaker 2: out that picture. Look at that picture of your child
• 19:36
  Speaker 2: or your grandchild. Is it worth it? What's going to
• 19:42
  Speaker 2: happen to your kids and your grandchildren if you're gone?
• 19:46
  Speaker 2: They do it. Could be on their phone, could be
• 19:50
  Speaker 2: in their wallet. They do it. That's what I do.
• 19:53
  Speaker 1: What do you say to, we'll go a little deeper here, Gino,
• 19:57
  Speaker 1: but what do you say to folks that it's just
• 20:04
  Speaker 1: not that simple?
• 20:05
  Speaker 2: It's not, and I tell them that.
• 20:08
  Speaker 1: That picture's just not enough. They need something more. They
• 20:14
  Speaker 1: need real, real help.
• 20:18
  Speaker 2: Yes, and I tell them that, but also, to me,
• 20:21
  Speaker 2: it's almost a stepping stone. I saw one girl that
• 20:27
  Speaker 2: a couple of weeks ago said that she wanted to
• 20:31
  Speaker 2: get off from using. And I said, you got any
• 20:34
  Speaker 2: pictures of your kids or your grandkids? She said, yeah.
• 20:37
  Speaker 2: I said, take one out. So she opened her phone.
• 20:41
  Speaker 2: I said, look at it. She started crying. I said,
• 20:44
  Speaker 2: when you want to use, you look at that picture
• 20:47
  Speaker 2: and see how that baby is not going to grow
• 20:52
  Speaker 2: up without their grandmother.
• 20:54
  Speaker 1: Yep.
• 20:55
  Speaker 2: And I do tell them to go to other places.
• 20:58
  Speaker 2: And I actually put an application in Turning Point to volunteer.
• 21:04
  Speaker 2: And I'm still doing heading church in the streets. You know,
• 21:09
  Speaker 2: anything to get them, I would say, kind of motivated.
• 21:13
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 21:13
  Speaker 2: Get them to think. You know, you tell me you
• 21:18
  Speaker 2: just had a newborn baby, grandchild, a couple of months old,
• 21:21
  Speaker 2: but you're out using.
• 21:24
  Speaker 1: Come on, dude.
• 21:27
  Speaker 2: I mean, and they know I'm harsh, but I'm also funny.
• 21:32
  Speaker 1: You are both. And that was one of the things
• 21:35
  Speaker 1: I was going to bring up today is that, man...
• 21:38
  Speaker 1: Your laugh is infectious. It is. It's one of a kind.
• 21:46
  Speaker 1: When people hear Gino laugh, they know it's Gino right away.
• 21:50
  Speaker 2: Oh, yeah.
• 21:51
  Speaker 1: I mean, you you are a very, very funny person,
• 21:54
  Speaker 1: but you also can be very serious at the drop
• 21:58
  Speaker 1: of a dime.
• 21:59
  Speaker 2: Big time. Big time.
• 22:02
  Speaker 1: Yeah. I mean, some mornings I'm on the air. I
• 22:05
  Speaker 1: see you out here on the other side of the
• 22:07
  Speaker 1: glass and you're listening to Aired Out on your headphones
• 22:11
  Speaker 1: and giving a wave.
• 22:11
  Speaker 2: And flex my muscle at G.
• 22:16
  Speaker 1: Flex your, let's see those biceps. Come on now. Damn.
• 22:28
  Speaker 2: A friend of mine told me that my muscles was
• 22:30
  Speaker 2: bigger than her husband's.
• 22:31
  Speaker 1: Yeah. You know, and I've seen you on the other
• 22:37
  Speaker 1: side of the class here flip me the bird, too.
• 22:41
  Speaker 2: I did not. That was for G.
• 22:42
  Speaker 1: Oh, that was for, oh, that was directed for G.
• 22:44
  Speaker 2: Because I had to tell him to calm down. Oh,
• 22:46
  Speaker 2: all right.
• 22:49
  Speaker 1: But, you know, the fact that you can go from
• 22:57
  Speaker 1: being a funny individual to being very serious in a
• 23:03
  Speaker 1: matter of seconds. I think is something that everyone needs.
• 23:11
  Speaker 1: They need someone in their life, a friend. Even if
• 23:16
  Speaker 1: you are borderline acquaintance, they need to be able to
• 23:22
  Speaker 1: have some connection to someone, some kind of understanding or relatability.
• 23:27
  Speaker 1: I'm a funny guy. I've got some great things going
• 23:30
  Speaker 1: on in my life, but right now things are shit.
• 23:34
  Speaker 2: Yes.
• 23:34
  Speaker 1: And it's hitting the fan. You know how to get
• 23:39
  Speaker 1: on that page real fast.
• 23:42
  Speaker 2: Well, yeah.
• 23:43
  Speaker 1: People need that, Gina.
• 23:44
  Speaker 2: Well, like you said, you know, when I sit with them,
• 23:47
  Speaker 2: we do the serious part. But then we also throw
• 23:52
  Speaker 2: in joking and laughing. So it's not just always serious.
• 23:57
  Speaker 2: You have to have a little bit of laughter. I mean,
• 23:59
  Speaker 2: I'm not saying that drugs are funny. That's not what
• 24:02
  Speaker 2: I'm saying.
• 24:02
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 24:03
  Speaker 2: What I'm saying is, you know, they need a little
• 24:07
  Speaker 2: laughter in their life.
• 24:09
  Speaker 1: How do you feel about the stigma that is connected
• 24:17
  Speaker 1: to either homelessness, substance use, mental health? These are all
• 24:27
  Speaker 1: things that are connected. Yeah. There's a lot of us
• 24:31
  Speaker 1: that are walking around with a big old stamp right
• 24:34
  Speaker 1: on our foreheads.
• 24:35
  Speaker 2: It's true. But to me, there's a lot of people
• 24:41
  Speaker 2: out there that live on the street that don't have
• 24:44
  Speaker 2: the mental illness or does drugs. They've just had a
• 24:48
  Speaker 2: bad life. You know, I don't know their whole stories.
• 24:52
  Speaker 1: Right.
• 24:52
  Speaker 2: A bad life to where they get them, you know,
• 24:55
  Speaker 2: got them there.
• 24:55
  Speaker 1: Sure. And maybe some bad decisions that didn't necessarily involve
• 25:02
  Speaker 1: drug use, right?
• 25:05
  Speaker 2: I always say to people, you know, 98 or maybe
• 25:10
  Speaker 2: 99% of the homeless people are amazing. You know, they
• 25:16
  Speaker 2: just need a friend.
• 25:17
  Speaker 1: But there's a disconnect that we are hesitant to speak
• 25:22
  Speaker 1: with them. We're hesitant to get eye contact. We chalked
• 25:28
  Speaker 1: them up and put them in. I see you nodding
• 25:29
  Speaker 1: your head. We chalked them up and put them in
• 25:31
  Speaker 1: a box.
• 25:33
  Speaker 2: And to me, I don't think that's fair. I'm sorry. Hey, gee,
• 25:36
  Speaker 2: that was an opinion. I pick on you while I
• 25:39
  Speaker 2: was here. But I think like me when I first
• 25:44
  Speaker 2: started doing it, I didn't know what I was going
• 25:47
  Speaker 2: to expect.
• 25:48
  Speaker 1: Right.
• 25:48
  Speaker 2: Okay. But, you know, if you walk up to him
• 25:52
  Speaker 2: and say, hi, how's it going today? Everything going okay?
• 25:55
  Speaker 1: Okay.
• 25:56
  Speaker 2: They're not psychos.
• 25:59
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 26:00
  Speaker 2: They're not going to flip out on you.
• 26:02
  Speaker 1: Right.
• 26:02
  Speaker 2: You know, they just want someone to show that they care.
• 26:06
  Speaker 1: Sure.
• 26:07
  Speaker 2: And that they're a friend. You might not understand why
• 26:11
  Speaker 2: they're in that position.
• 26:12
  Speaker 1: Yeah. But don't assume. But don't assume.
• 26:16
  Speaker 2: You can't.
• 26:18
  Speaker 1: Don't assume. Yeah.
• 26:20
  Speaker 2: I mean, a lot of people, like, maybe they... lost
• 26:25
  Speaker 2: their homes because of a divorce.
• 26:28
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 26:29
  Speaker 2: And I have this, I was on the air with, God,
• 26:34
  Speaker 2: I can't remember his name. Maybe it was Sanders. Long,
• 26:38
  Speaker 2: long time ago, talking about homeless people. And I said,
• 26:42
  Speaker 2: excuse me, I said it could happen to anybody. A doctor,
• 26:46
  Speaker 2: a lawyer, a judge.
• 26:48
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 26:50
  Speaker 2: But it doesn't make them a bad person. It could
• 26:53
  Speaker 2: be a police officer. It could be anybody that will
• 26:56
  Speaker 2: get into a bad situation, lose everything, no matter who
• 27:01
  Speaker 2: you are, and end up on those streets. And I
• 27:05
  Speaker 2: told Bernie Sanders that.
• 27:06
  Speaker 1: And it can happen in... A drop of a dime.
• 27:10
  Speaker 1: A drop of a dime to any of us.
• 27:13
  Speaker 2: Could happen to me tomorrow. I don't know.
• 27:15
  Speaker 1: Could happen to me tomorrow.
• 27:16
  Speaker 2: We don't know. I know. But it doesn't mean that
• 27:21
  Speaker 2: it makes us a bad person. It doesn't, and I
• 27:25
  Speaker 2: said to Bernie Sanders, I said, you know, well, a
• 27:30
  Speaker 2: lot of times when someone looks at a homeless person,
• 27:33
  Speaker 2: not everybody, they say, well, they look scary.
• 27:39
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 27:39
  Speaker 2: This was live on TV, the TV station in Montpelier.
• 27:44
  Speaker 1: Yep.
• 27:45
  Speaker 2: And I said, hey, Bernie, I love Bernie. I've known
• 27:49
  Speaker 2: him for a long time. I said, do I look scary?
• 27:53
  Speaker 2: He goes, no. I said, do you know I'm homeless?
• 27:58
  Speaker 2: Not all homeless people are scary or threatening.
• 28:01
  Speaker 1: Yeah, right. I got to tell you, and I haven't
• 28:06
  Speaker 1: had a chance. There's so many things that I want
• 28:10
  Speaker 1: to tell you, Gino, that I never get enough time
• 28:13
  Speaker 1: with you. That's why I think you should come in
• 28:14
  Speaker 1: here once a month. Give updates on things. certain stories.
• 28:21
  Speaker 2: I do have another story.
• 28:22
  Speaker 1: Yeah, please, but I have one for you.
• 28:24
  Speaker 2: Okay, well, I think I'll go in first, because I'm your.
• 28:26
  Speaker 1: No, no, don't start fighting with me.
• 28:28
  Speaker 2: I'm your guest, you're just the runner.
• 28:33
  Speaker 1: You go first.
• 28:35
  Speaker 2: I was sitting down, down street, I think it was
• 28:38
  Speaker 2: like almost a month ago, at the, across from the
• 28:44
  Speaker 2: courthouse on a little brick thing.
• 28:45
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 28:46
  Speaker 2: And there was two little kids. I would say they
• 28:48
  Speaker 2: were eight and ten. They had sweat coming down them.
• 28:52
  Speaker 2: And I said, hey, little ones, how's it going today?
• 28:55
  Speaker 2: It's pretty hot out today. And they said, yeah. So
• 28:59
  Speaker 2: I said, come here. Gave them each five bucks. I said,
• 29:03
  Speaker 2: now you go in the store, get something to eat,
• 29:05
  Speaker 2: and get some water. And they did.
• 29:10
  Speaker 1: How'd that make you feel?
• 29:11
  Speaker 2: Children. I mean, don't get me wrong. I'll do it
• 29:14
  Speaker 2: for anybody. Not everybody. I can't always do it. But
• 29:18
  Speaker 2: they were kids, you know, and I just felt bad.
• 29:23
  Speaker 2: I mean, I felt good about doing it, you know.
• 29:27
  Speaker 2: And I think sometimes I have to think and look back.
• 29:34
  Speaker 2: Would somebody do that for my child? Yeah.
• 29:38
  Speaker 1: Were they happy?
• 29:39
  Speaker 2: Oh, yeah. I said what did you guys get water
• 29:43
  Speaker 2: and they had all this candy I said you were
• 29:46
  Speaker 2: supposed to get a sandwich you were supposed to get
• 29:48
  Speaker 2: a sandwich not bags of candy but that was fine
• 29:55
  Speaker 2: they both gave me a hug and I said I'll
• 29:56
  Speaker 2: see you around yeah All right.
• 29:59
  Speaker 1: My turn for the story.
• 30:00
  Speaker 2: All right, go ahead.
• 30:01
  Speaker 1: All right. By the way, this is live. None of
• 30:05
  Speaker 1: this is rehearsed. No. I never get enough time to
• 30:10
  Speaker 1: chew the fat with you, Gino.
• 30:11
  Speaker 2: No, no, we don't.
• 30:13
  Speaker 1: The other day, I was parked right out here. Right
• 30:19
  Speaker 1: out here in front of this studio. And here comes
• 30:22
  Speaker 1: this guy. And... He... very, very much from his body
• 30:35
  Speaker 1: movements looked like he was high on something. And he
• 30:45
  Speaker 1: came right up on me and we locked eyes. He stopped.
• 30:50
  Speaker 1: I stopped. We both stared at each other. And I said,
• 30:59
  Speaker 1: how you doing? And he nodded his head. Didn't say anything.
• 31:07
  Speaker 1: And I said, are you okay? Yeah. And I said,
• 31:12
  Speaker 1: what are you up to? I didn't know what else
• 31:15
  Speaker 1: to say.
• 31:16
  Speaker 2: It is hard.
• 31:18
  Speaker 1: What are you up to? And he just kind of
• 31:21
  Speaker 1: shrugged his shoulders. And then he said something to me,
• 31:26
  Speaker 1: and he was moving around quite a bit. Then he
• 31:29
  Speaker 1: said something to me that was, uh, really profound that
• 31:34
  Speaker 1: I'll never forget. He said, you probably think I'm high
• 31:40
  Speaker 1: on drugs. And the truth is, is that that's, that's
• 31:49
  Speaker 1: pretty accurate. And I said, well, uh, If you are,
• 31:56
  Speaker 1: that's your choice, but I would hope you would get
• 31:59
  Speaker 1: some help. And he said, actually, that's what everybody thinks
• 32:04
  Speaker 1: when they see me. But I have Parkinson's. I don't
• 32:10
  Speaker 1: know if you know Michael. Yeah. But lives down at
• 32:20
  Speaker 1: the hotel. He's had Parkinson's since he was 16 years old.
• 32:27
  Speaker 1: I think he's in his 50s now, from what I remember.
• 32:34
  Speaker 1: But doesn't do drugs.
• 32:37
  Speaker 2: Well, that's what I'm saying. A lot of them out
• 32:40
  Speaker 2: there do not do drugs. And some of them do
• 32:43
  Speaker 2: have a physical, mental illness. There's another guy that walks
• 32:49
  Speaker 2: around limping, but he kind of sways. Does not do drugs.
• 32:53
  Speaker 1: He just walked in front of the studio.
• 32:54
  Speaker 2: Yes, we know who he is.
• 32:55
  Speaker 1: He just walked in front of the studio half an hour,
• 32:58
  Speaker 1: 20 minutes ago.
• 32:59
  Speaker 2: Yeah, brain injury.
• 33:01
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 33:01
  Speaker 2: That's why he's the way he is and does not
• 33:03
  Speaker 2: do drugs.
• 33:04
  Speaker 1: Well, look at Jarrett. That's... Yeah.
• 33:08
  Speaker 2: Yeah. So there is a lot, not a lot, but
• 33:11
  Speaker 2: there's some, you know, out there that does have some
• 33:15
  Speaker 2: kind of illness but does not do drugs.
• 33:18
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 33:20
  Speaker 2: And... I can tell now. I can tell now.
• 33:27
  Speaker 1: I can't.
• 33:28
  Speaker 2: People walking down the street with canes.
• 33:30
  Speaker 1: Yep.
• 33:31
  Speaker 2: Or walking.
• 33:31
  Speaker 1: I know you can tell.
• 33:33
  Speaker 2: You know, walking funny or sideways or whatever. And I
• 33:36
  Speaker 2: know that for sure they do not do drugs. One
• 33:39
  Speaker 2: of them had a stroke, but it looked like they
• 33:41
  Speaker 2: were walking down the street being high and they weren't.
• 33:44
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 33:45
  Speaker 2: So you have to, I don't know if you want
• 33:48
  Speaker 2: to call it a fine line. You have to really
• 33:52
  Speaker 2: get to know what their, you know, illness is compared
• 33:58
  Speaker 2: to doing drugs. Because I don't judge. I still talk to.
• 34:02
  Speaker 1: Them, too. I ran down to Domino's and grabbed a
• 34:11
  Speaker 1: pizza for Michael. And he was real appreciative. And we
• 34:18
  Speaker 1: had some time to chat. And I invited him to
• 34:22
  Speaker 1: come in here and tell his story, which is a
• 34:26
  Speaker 1: pretty amazing story. I mean, there's a lot to it.
• 34:30
  Speaker 1: Being diagnosed with Parkinson's so long ago.
• 34:33
  Speaker 2: Yeah.
• 34:35
  Speaker 1: And what brought him to Vermont and why he's still here,
• 34:42
  Speaker 1: which I'm not going to answer for him. No. I'll
• 34:45
  Speaker 1: let him do that. He knows he's got an invite.
• 34:48
  Speaker 1: Whether or not he'll come in here and take me
• 34:51
  Speaker 1: up on it is another story. But, man, it's like
• 34:56
  Speaker 1: we just... We're quick to judge. All of us are.
• 35:09
  Speaker 1: But just try... Don't be too gullible either. You've got
• 35:16
  Speaker 1: to be smart. But just try to say to yourself,
• 35:25
  Speaker 1: I wonder what the story is here. I wonder, is
• 35:33
  Speaker 1: this everything that it appears to be? Maybe it is.
• 35:38
  Speaker 1: Maybe it's not.
• 35:40
  Speaker 2: I think you have to smooth into it. Don't start
• 35:43
  Speaker 2: right off, hey, are you doing drugs?
• 35:45
  Speaker 1: Yeah, right.
• 35:45
  Speaker 2: Sit and smooth into it. Yeah. And then after a while,
• 35:49
  Speaker 2: when they trust you, then they'll get into maybe they
• 35:52
  Speaker 2: don't or maybe they do.
• 35:53
  Speaker 1: Yeah. Yeah.
• 35:55
  Speaker 2: You know, and it's like, I don't, like you said,
• 35:58
  Speaker 2: I don't judge anybody. I know people out there that
• 36:01
  Speaker 2: are transgendering.
• 36:03
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 36:04
  Speaker 2: I don't go down on them. Because I am.
• 36:06
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 36:07
  Speaker 2: And people know that.
• 36:08
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 36:08
  Speaker 2: And they still respect me.
• 36:10
  Speaker 1: Very much so.
• 36:12
  Speaker 2: They told me, you know, Gino, no matter who you
• 36:16
  Speaker 2: are or what you want to be, it's fine with us.
• 36:19
  Speaker 2: We love you, and you're here for us. Oh, you
• 36:23
  Speaker 2: like my mustache?
• 36:25
  Speaker 1: I do.
• 36:26
  Speaker 2: I tell everybody the women like it.
• 36:28
  Speaker 1: Good for you, Gino.
• 36:32
  Speaker 2: You know, and.
• 36:33
  Speaker 1: And I've told you that, too.
• 36:34
  Speaker 2: Yes.
• 36:34
  Speaker 1: I can give a damn. I know what your heart is.
• 36:38
  Speaker 2: That's just it. I mean... Why not be who you
• 36:43
  Speaker 2: want to be?
• 36:44
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 36:46
  Speaker 2: You know, and it comes along with the judgment. And,
• 36:52
  Speaker 2: you know, I don't look at people any differently than
• 36:57
  Speaker 2: who I am. You can't.
• 37:02
  Speaker 1: Why?
• 37:02
  Speaker 2: What's the point? You know, I mean, if you're going
• 37:07
  Speaker 2: to respect somebody or love them, have trust... I mean,
• 37:13
  Speaker 2: I sit with all kinds of walks of life, no
• 37:17
  Speaker 2: matter color, race, if they want to be transgender, if
• 37:22
  Speaker 2: they're this or that. We sit, we talk, we have
• 37:26
  Speaker 2: a good time, and they all give me a hug. Actually,
• 37:30
  Speaker 2: I got to tell you this story. It's funny.
• 37:32
  Speaker 1: Tiffany out here. Remember Tiffany?
• 37:36
  Speaker 2: Yeah.
• 37:36
  Speaker 1: We were just sitting out here. Right out on these
• 37:40
  Speaker 1: black benches, right on the... 20 feet from where I
• 37:43
  Speaker 1: am right now.
• 37:45
  Speaker 2: Two days ago.
• 37:46
  Speaker 1: By the way, I think they found a place to live.
• 37:49
  Speaker 2: Yes. There's a lot of people that, yes, I know
• 37:52
  Speaker 2: who they are. I directed them to heading church to
• 37:55
  Speaker 2: get blankets. I helped them. I have to tell you,
• 37:58
  Speaker 2: this is so funny.
• 37:59
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 38:00
  Speaker 2: I have to say this. I was sitting down in
• 38:04
  Speaker 2: my little spot. I think it was like Friday. And
• 38:09
  Speaker 2: of course, people came up, sat with me.
• 38:12
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 38:12
  Speaker 2: And this is one person, transgender. And, of course, you know,
• 38:17
  Speaker 2: they gave me hugs. And so I gave her a
• 38:23
  Speaker 2: smack on the lips. Some guy went by and said, Gino,
• 38:27
  Speaker 2: keep your hands off my wife. I said it was
• 38:33
  Speaker 2: just a kiss. And I knew the person. And we
• 38:37
  Speaker 2: were all laughing. I knew the person. I didn't get offended.
• 38:40
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 38:42
  Speaker 2: Why would I?
• 38:42
  Speaker 1: Well, we all get easily offended by everything, Gino.
• 38:47
  Speaker 2: You know, and I don't. I don't.
• 38:51
  Speaker 1: Just got a comment here. Nobody, no one knows what
• 38:57
  Speaker 1: drug someone might be taking. People say, I know she's clean. Dude,
• 39:04
  Speaker 1: addicts lie. Yeah.
• 39:10
  Speaker 2: Some do.
• 39:11
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 39:12
  Speaker 2: But I don't.
• 39:13
  Speaker 1: Also, Donna says addiction doesn't discriminate.
• 39:17
  Speaker 2: No.
• 39:19
  Speaker 1: Homeless, lawyers, businessmen, average person. Great point.
• 39:26
  Speaker 2: You know, and I went up to Courier Park a
• 39:28
  Speaker 2: couple of months ago. when Turning Point was having that
• 39:32
  Speaker 2: memorial thing.
• 39:33
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 39:34
  Speaker 2: And they even said that they don't discriminate anybody that
• 39:41
  Speaker 2: are on drugs or drink. They've had a lot of
• 39:44
  Speaker 2: people that have gotten off it. And of course, all
• 39:47
  Speaker 2: the the stands and stuff where you can look around.
• 39:51
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 39:52
  Speaker 2: I tell you, I can't go nowhere. They all knew me.
• 39:54
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 39:55
  Speaker 2: And they're like, Gino, Gino. And I'm like, oh, please,
• 39:58
  Speaker 2: everybody just calm down. Sure, sure. But, you know, and
• 40:02
  Speaker 2: that's just it. Don't discriminate who they are, what they do.
• 40:08
  Speaker 1: Help them. Here's the thing, and I might get in
• 40:12
  Speaker 1: a little bit of trouble for saying this, but I
• 40:15
  Speaker 1: just don't.
• 40:16
  Speaker 2: JD, you're always getting in trouble.
• 40:17
  Speaker 1: I don't give a shit anymore. I really don't. But
• 40:20
  Speaker 1: it's like, here's the thing, Gino. Scumbags. Scumbags come in
• 40:30
  Speaker 1: all shapes and colors. And heights and weights. Drug use.
• 40:41
  Speaker 1: No drug use. Clean and sober. Or.
• 40:46
  Speaker 2: 10 years.
• 40:48
  Speaker 1: Or totally addicted. Just because you're a user or an
• 40:58
  Speaker 1: addict to anything, alcohol, drugs, gambling, doesn't necessarily mean that
• 41:07
  Speaker 1: you're a scumbag.
• 41:09
  Speaker 2: That you're not a bad person.
• 41:11
  Speaker 1: Right. That's what I'm saying. I've known some clean and
• 41:17
  Speaker 1: sober incredible scumbags in my time, especially over the last
• 41:27
  Speaker 1: five years of my life. So rethink what's crawling around
• 41:39
  Speaker 1: in your head. Rethink your own conclusions on people. don't
• 41:46
  Speaker 1: be so quick to judge.
• 41:48
  Speaker 2: No, no.
• 41:49
  Speaker 1: Because, yeah, there's a lot of people out there that
• 41:54
  Speaker 1: need to get clean, that need to get help. And
• 41:57
  Speaker 1: are they a menace to society? Yeah, many of them are. Yes.
• 42:01
  Speaker 2: But not all of them.
• 42:03
  Speaker 1: But not all of them. And some of us are
• 42:06
  Speaker 1: walking around clean and sober, and we are a menace.
• 42:13
  Speaker 1: I'm just saying. And No, I'm not becoming a crotchety
• 42:19
  Speaker 1: old man.
• 42:22
  Speaker 2: I am. I'm 60.
• 42:25
  Speaker 1: Good for you, Gino. My God. I met you about
• 42:31
  Speaker 1: 30 years ago through Sherry Lamberton.
• 42:35
  Speaker 2: Amazing lady.
• 42:36
  Speaker 1: Our beloved friend, who is.
• 42:41
  Speaker 1: You talk about a.
• 42:44
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, she's done a lot.
• 42:46
  Speaker 1: A pillar in the community for decades. Oh, yeah. And
• 42:53
  Speaker 1: just like you, massive heart. How many benefits were you
• 43:00
  Speaker 1: part of with Sherry?
• 43:02
  Speaker 2: Oh, my God. I can't even count, J.D.
• 43:05
  Speaker 1: Over the decades.
• 43:06
  Speaker 2: I don't know. There was a lot. But the thing
• 43:09
  Speaker 2: with Sherry is she never took a dime. She did
• 43:13
  Speaker 2: everything for free.
• 43:14
  Speaker 1: I know.
• 43:14
  Speaker 2: When it came to benefits, helping people get wheelchair, wheelchair vans,
• 43:20
  Speaker 2: this and that, never took a dime.
• 43:22
  Speaker 1: I know. As someone who is empathetic to others, who
• 43:33
  Speaker 1: wants to give, finds the joy in their heart when
• 43:40
  Speaker 1: They're witnessing others receive like yourself. You have to also
• 43:47
  Speaker 1: take care of yourself, Gino.
• 43:49
  Speaker 2: I know. I know. And it's hard.
• 43:51
  Speaker 1: I'm not just talking about your body. I'm talking about
• 43:54
  Speaker 1: your mental health, too. You know what I'm saying?
• 43:57
  Speaker 2: Yeah. I took a week off because, you know, my
• 44:00
  Speaker 2: friend Pat Pastore and Phyllis just said, you look tired.
• 44:06
  Speaker 2: You look worn out.
• 44:07
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 44:08
  Speaker 2: You know, and I do. And I'm not going to
• 44:10
  Speaker 2: say I don't.
• 44:12
  Speaker 1: You're so involved with the heading church. And they do
• 44:17
  Speaker 1: so much. I mean, Pastor Ray was just in here.
• 44:19
  Speaker 1: It's unbelievable. It's unbelievable what they do just in a
• 44:24
  Speaker 1: week's time.
• 44:26
  Speaker 2: Yeah, every time I see they, I always say, hey,
• 44:29
  Speaker 2: there's my favorite pastor. And they'll just say, there's my
• 44:33
  Speaker 2: favorite Gino.
• 44:34
  Speaker 1: What do you do over there?
• 44:36
  Speaker 2: I help with the community meal. I do the donations,
• 44:39
  Speaker 2: like if clothes and stuff comes in, I'll go through them,
• 44:42
  Speaker 2: separate the women, the men's, you know, sizes, and I'll
• 44:48
  Speaker 2: put a couple of tables out in the community room,
• 44:50
  Speaker 2: I call it, where we have the meal every Friday night,
• 44:54
  Speaker 2: and people can go through and grab clothes, sleeping bags, blankets.
• 45:02
  Speaker 2: Let's see, what else do I do?
• 45:03
  Speaker 1: I do a lot.
• 45:04
  Speaker 2: But anything, unload the trucks if they need help, If
• 45:09
  Speaker 2: they need help, they just say, Gino, can you be here?
• 45:13
  Speaker 2: Or they call me or text me and say, we
• 45:15
  Speaker 2: got a truck coming. I'm right over there.
• 45:18
  Speaker 1: You're also kind of the conduit, the boots-on-the-ground connection between
• 45:25
  Speaker 1: an incredible resource and the people that really need that help.
• 45:35
  Speaker 2: There is something that's coming up. I'm not sure when
• 45:37
  Speaker 2: it's going to open, but when I find out, You're
• 45:40
  Speaker 2: going to be the first person to know. The mental
• 45:44
  Speaker 2: health building on Summer Street is moving all the offices upstairs.
• 45:49
  Speaker 1: The Wellspace building.
• 45:50
  Speaker 2: And downstairs is going to be for suicide prevention. You
• 45:56
  Speaker 2: can walk in there. So once I find out more
• 45:59
  Speaker 2: details when it's going to open, I'll hit you up.
• 46:02
  Speaker 1: You know, September.
• 46:04
  Speaker 2: And I'm going to help there, too.
• 46:07
  Speaker 1: Not surprised.
• 46:07
  Speaker 2: I don't live that far from there.
• 46:09
  Speaker 1: I know. September is suicide prevention and awareness month.
• 46:15
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I went up to that one at Curia Park
• 46:17
  Speaker 2: when they.
• 46:18
  Speaker 1: You're always there when there's something going on in our
• 46:22
  Speaker 1: community that involves helping others. You're always there.
• 46:26
  Speaker 2: I try. You know, it might be like a couple
• 46:29
  Speaker 2: of them I miss, but it all depended on what
• 46:31
  Speaker 2: came up in my life at that time. Yeah. But
• 46:35
  Speaker 2: I try. I try my hardest.
• 46:37
  Speaker 1: You're a change-maker. You are somebody that embodies that. You
• 46:46
  Speaker 1: walk around with a big heart inside, but you walk
• 46:51
  Speaker 1: around exuding so much hope for others, inspiration to be better,
• 47:02
  Speaker 1: to get better, to live a happier life. You're making
• 47:08
  Speaker 1: real change.
• 47:13
  Speaker 2: I mean, I remember way back when I was into
• 47:16
  Speaker 2: all that stuff. Was I ever happy?
• 47:18
  Speaker 1: No.
• 47:19
  Speaker 2: Did I have a job?
• 47:20
  Speaker 1: No.
• 47:21
  Speaker 2: And then after a while I started, you know, kind
• 47:26
  Speaker 2: of started getting my shit together. I went to L
• 47:29
  Speaker 2: & A school. I was in L & A for
• 47:31
  Speaker 2: over 20 years. Yes, I still did drugs and drank,
• 47:35
  Speaker 2: but I didn't do it before I went to work.
• 47:38
  Speaker 2: And I worked a lot of hours and being a
• 47:40
  Speaker 2: single parent and going to college. You know, I had
• 47:43
  Speaker 2: my downfalls, and my son would go and stay with
• 47:45
  Speaker 2: my mom, my dad, or my brother. I'm not saying
• 47:48
  Speaker 2: I didn't, and I ended up in the hospital. But
• 47:52
  Speaker 2: I came back out and did it again. I mean, yeah,
• 47:57
  Speaker 2: I've tried and tried and tried so many times, but
• 47:59
  Speaker 2: you know what? I got to the point where, like
• 48:02
  Speaker 2: I said, I looked at my little baby boy and said,
• 48:05
  Speaker 2: is it worth it? I'm a single parent. That would
• 48:10
  Speaker 2: kill me if I had to put him somewhere and
• 48:12
  Speaker 2: lost him for good. I still say he's my baby boy,
• 48:18
  Speaker 2: and he's 36. He's like, Mom, I'm not a baby.
• 48:22
  Speaker 2: I said to me, you'll always be my baby boy.
• 48:24
  Speaker 2: I don't care if you're 60. I still help him
• 48:28
  Speaker 2: when he needs it. He's my number one priority in
• 48:32
  Speaker 2: the streets. He's my second.
• 48:37
  Speaker 1: What a story. And you're still very, very close with John.
• 48:44
  Speaker 2: Oh, yeah. He's been going through a lot of problems.
• 48:48
  Speaker 2: I can share it because some people know. But my
• 48:52
  Speaker 2: son has an alcohol problem. So he's been in and
• 48:57
  Speaker 2: out of detox the last four years. He's into sober houses.
• 49:02
  Speaker 2: He's doing good now. I mean, he goes a year
• 49:05
  Speaker 2: and a half and then he relapses for a couple
• 49:08
  Speaker 2: of days. And so he goes into detox or something, rehab.
• 49:13
  Speaker 2: But now he's in a sober house. He's working in
• 49:15
  Speaker 2: a warehouse. He's running the forklift. He called me up
• 49:22
  Speaker 2: one night when he started the forklift. He says, Mom,
• 49:26
  Speaker 2: you never guess what I did today. I'm like, oh,
• 49:27
  Speaker 2: my God, if you're like your mother, I don't want
• 49:29
  Speaker 2: to hear it. They let him try the forklift. Now,
• 49:34
  Speaker 2: my son's got a size 12 shoe. He pushed the
• 49:37
  Speaker 2: gas down too much. and went right into the pile
• 49:41
  Speaker 2: of pox.
• 49:42
  Speaker 1: Oh, shit.
• 49:44
  Speaker 2: I had to laugh so hard. I'm like, Johnny, don't forget,
• 49:48
  Speaker 2: you got a size 12 shoe. You don't have to
• 49:50
  Speaker 2: push the gas down too much.
• 49:55
  Speaker 1: You damage a bunch of stuff? Yeah.
• 49:57
  Speaker 2: I tell everybody, my kid is a spitting image of
• 50:02
  Speaker 2: his mother. He's funny. He does volunteer work at the churches,
• 50:07
  Speaker 2: food shelves in New Hampshire. getting clean and sober. You know,
• 50:12
  Speaker 2: he's got a big hide. He would do the same thing.
• 50:15
  Speaker 2: Give somebody a shirt, jacket, shoes, anything.
• 50:24
  Speaker 1: What do you say, Gino, to someone who is fighting
• 50:34
  Speaker 1: with the word hope right now, that maybe has lost
• 50:36
  Speaker 1: a little bit of it? Is discouraged?
• 50:41
  Speaker 2: I've been there. And I just say, you know, there
• 50:45
  Speaker 2: is hope for you, but you have to, you know,
• 50:48
  Speaker 2: to me, I had to make that first step. I mean,
• 50:52
  Speaker 2: and not to talk about religion, but praying to God,
• 50:57
  Speaker 2: asking for strength and courage. I do every day. To
• 51:01
  Speaker 2: be out, what I'm doing at the church, I still
• 51:05
  Speaker 2: need strength and courage because any day I could relapse.
• 51:12
  Speaker 2: And I have thought about it, and I'm not going
• 51:14
  Speaker 2: to lie, but it was drinking. And I had the
• 51:18
  Speaker 2: beer open. I sniffed it. And then I dumped it.
• 51:22
  Speaker 2: Didn't drink it. Because I just got done praying. I'm
• 51:26
  Speaker 2: not going to say that God tipped that can over.
• 51:32
  Speaker 2: I did that. But I asked for strength and courage.
• 51:34
  Speaker 2: I said, I do not want to do this again.
• 51:37
  Speaker 2: Because everything that I'm doing right now, I'll lose it.
• 51:41
  Speaker 2: I won't have what I have. I won't have a
• 51:44
  Speaker 2: place to live. I wouldn't be able to help anybody
• 51:46
  Speaker 2: on the streets. I wouldn't be able to go to
• 51:49
  Speaker 2: heading church, volunteer for Turning Point pretty soon. The suicide
• 51:54
  Speaker 2: awareness place, that's going to be opening up soon. I'd
• 51:59
  Speaker 2: be gone. I'd be lost, not just in the world,
• 52:03
  Speaker 2: but I'd be totally lost within myself. And then get
• 52:07
  Speaker 2: to the point where I said, I don't give a shit.
• 52:11
  Speaker 2: And that's not healthy, and I know that. Like I said,
• 52:14
  Speaker 2: I have a lot of help. From heading church, my
• 52:18
  Speaker 2: best friend Pat, you know. It's just, I think a
• 52:24
  Speaker 2: lot of it is being out on the street. I
• 52:29
  Speaker 2: look at it like, wow, I used to be there.
• 52:33
  Speaker 2: And I know how it feels. Yeah, I get sad.
• 52:37
  Speaker 2: I'm not going to deny I get sad. But I
• 52:40
  Speaker 2: don't show it. I wait when I go home to,
• 52:45
  Speaker 2: you know, to feel the sadness, the loss of hope,
• 52:49
  Speaker 2: the faith, you know, and they just need to be encouraged.
• 52:56
  Speaker 2: You know, don't give up hope. There is hope for you.
• 53:00
  Speaker 2: But you need to go in the right direction. Maybe
• 53:02
  Speaker 2: you're going in the wrong direction, but I'll show you
• 53:04
  Speaker 2: the right direction. And I'm going to start carrying business
• 53:08
  Speaker 2: cards of the church. business cards of Turning Point, Washington
• 53:15
  Speaker 2: County Mental Health. And when somebody approaches me and says,
• 53:19
  Speaker 2: what do I do? Yeah, there's a business card for
• 53:22
  Speaker 2: all four places. They use it, they use it. If
• 53:25
  Speaker 2: they don't, they don't. That's their choice. But I'm helping
• 53:29
  Speaker 2: them make that choice. Am I making sense?
• 53:33
  Speaker 1: You're making a lot of sense.
• 53:37
  Speaker 2: Sometimes I get gabbing. Pastor Ray would say, 30 seconds.
• 53:41
  Speaker 1: No, no. Not here. You got a lot of people listening.
• 53:47
  Speaker 1: It's getting cooler. Some even call it cold. It's down
• 53:53
  Speaker 1: in the 30s at night. Are you thinking about the homeless?
• 53:58
  Speaker 2: Yes, I am.
• 53:59
  Speaker 1: What message do you have for them?
• 54:01
  Speaker 2: Well, you know, I'm hoping that the churches, you know,
• 54:04
  Speaker 2: will open up again for the warm shelters or whatever
• 54:08
  Speaker 2: it's called.
• 54:09
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 54:10
  Speaker 2: But starting this Friday, at the community meal, I'm going
• 54:15
  Speaker 2: to be putting out sweaters, coats, long johns, jeans, sweatpants.
• 54:20
  Speaker 1: Okay.
• 54:21
  Speaker 2: And then once winter comes, of course, there'll be winter
• 54:24
  Speaker 2: coats and boots.
• 54:28
  Speaker 1: Gino, you are such an inspiration. Funny as hell.
• 54:35
  Speaker 2: I should have been a comedian, but you know.
• 54:37
  Speaker 1: Listen, you want to go do a stand-up comedy bit?
• 54:39
  Speaker 1: Both of us together?
• 54:41
  Speaker 2: I don't know. I think the jokes would be very
• 54:43
  Speaker 2: inappropriate online.
• 54:44
  Speaker 1: Good. Gino, you got a lot of friends. You got
• 54:50
  Speaker 1: a lot of people that love you. You're doing incredible work.
• 54:54
  Speaker 1: Real grassroots level. On the streets. One foot in front
• 55:01
  Speaker 1: of the other. Pounding the pavement every day.
• 55:06
  Speaker 2: Real quick. On Sundays, when Pastor Ray does her, you know, service,
• 55:14
  Speaker 2: she says, you know, pray for this, pray for that.
• 55:18
  Speaker 2: And every Sunday, she puts in the homeless, the addictions,
• 55:23
  Speaker 2: people who are ill. Every Sunday, Pastor Ray does not
• 55:28
  Speaker 2: miss to pray for these people. You know, and a
• 55:33
  Speaker 2: little prayer goes a long way, I think. Yeah. If
• 55:35
  Speaker 2: everybody can just say a little quick prayer, you know,
• 55:39
  Speaker 2: please help our neighbors, our friends, our relatives who are
• 55:45
  Speaker 2: here on earth now. You know, we're all God's children.
• 55:49
  Speaker 2: Why not give a little push?
• 55:53
  Speaker 1: Keeping it real, raw, relevant, and relatable. You're doing that.
• 56:01
  Speaker 2: I speak my mind.
• 56:02
  Speaker 1: I know you do. God bless you. Hey, listen, if
• 56:06
  Speaker 1: you're looking for your keys, if you're looking to improve
• 56:10
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• 56:38
  Speaker 1: this morning to Fecto Homes. The selection of single and
• 56:41
  Speaker 1: double wide homes at Fecto Homes is massive. The modular
• 56:46
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• 56:50
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• 57:00
  Speaker 1: tour yourself of Fecto Homes. Gino, thanks for coming.
• 57:04
  Speaker 2: In here, man. Not a problem.
• 57:06
  Speaker 1: You're just unbelievable. You really are. You're such a community powerhouse.
• 57:15
  Speaker 1: You're a, I don't know, vigilante? I don't know. But
• 57:20
  Speaker 1: you're the one. that's really connecting with people on the streets.
• 57:28
  Speaker 2: Well, like I said, you do have to be hard
• 57:30
  Speaker 2: on them sometimes. But you also have to have that
• 57:32
  Speaker 2: little laughter and stuff like that to ease them, too.
• 57:37
  Speaker 2: I don't want to go out on the street and
• 57:38
  Speaker 2: just be a hard-ass all the time.
• 57:40
  Speaker 1: Listen, I want to invite myself. I ask you right now.
• 57:44
  Speaker 1: I would like to come out. We've done it once before.
• 57:49
  Speaker 1: I would like to come out again, bring the camera.
• 57:52
  Speaker 1: out on the streets with you, mic up, and sit down.
• 57:56
  Speaker 2: Yeah, but just sit right out there on that spot
• 57:58
  Speaker 2: where I.
• 57:59
  Speaker 1: Always hang out. That's fine. Here's what I won't do.
• 58:04
  Speaker 1: I won't smoke a cigarette. Me either. I know you won't,
• 58:08
  Speaker 1: and it's a good thing, because if I were to
• 58:11
  Speaker 1: take one drag off a cigarette, oh, God.
• 58:14
  Speaker 2: You'll get dizzy.
• 58:14
  Speaker 1: I'd get dizzy. I'd be coughing in the ambulance. It's just.
• 58:20
  Speaker 2: No, no, I know CPR. Yeah. Don't.
• 58:23
  Speaker 1: It would really be bad.
• 58:25
  Speaker 2: No, I have my rules.
• 58:26
  Speaker 1: But I would love to, yeah, I would love to
• 58:28
  Speaker 1: come out and hang out with you on the street sometime. Okay.
• 58:31
  Speaker 2: You know, I tell, real quick. Let's do that.
• 58:33
  Speaker 1: Let's do that.
• 58:34
  Speaker 2: I tell people, come with me for five minutes, ten
• 58:37
  Speaker 2: minutes a day and find out what's going on in
• 58:38
  Speaker 2: this town.
• 58:39
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 58:40
  Speaker 2: And see what people are really, really going through.
• 58:43
  Speaker 1: Yeah. You're amazing.
• 58:45
  Speaker 2: I mean, I'm not trying to be an ass. I'm
• 58:47
  Speaker 2: just telling the truth.
• 58:48
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 58:49
  Speaker 2: From me.
• 58:50
  Speaker 1: Yeah. Let's see if we can get Michael in here. Okay.
• 58:55
  Speaker 1: Will you put some heat on him too? Yeah. It's
• 58:58
  Speaker 1: down at the pier.
• 58:59
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I know where that is.
• 59:00
  Speaker 1: All right. Let's see if we can get him in
• 59:02
  Speaker 1: here because his story is amazing.
• 59:05
  Speaker 2: There's a lot of them out there that are amazing.
• 59:06
  Speaker 1: I know.
• 59:07
  Speaker 2: And I've been trying.
• 59:09
  Speaker 1: We're going to continue.
• 59:11
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I'm not going to give up.
• 59:13
  Speaker 1: We will air them out.
• 59:14
  Speaker 2: Okay?
• 59:15
  Speaker 1: There's a lot of great stories out there of resilience, hope,
• 59:24
  Speaker 1: and people who have the desire to be better and
• 59:29
  Speaker 1: do more. In our community.
• 59:31
  Speaker 2: They do.
• 59:32
  Speaker 1: Big time.
• 59:33
  Speaker 2: They need a push.
• 59:35
  Speaker 1: I want you in here once a month if we can.
• 59:37
  Speaker 1: Because the message that you give to others is so profound.
• 59:42
  Speaker 1: It really is. Let's do it, Gino.
• 59:45
  Speaker 2: Sounds good, buddy.
• 59:45
  Speaker 1: All right. Talk to you soon. I'll see you soon.
• 59:48
  Speaker 1: I see you every day.
• 59:49
  Speaker 2: All right. Love you, buddy.
• 59:50
  Speaker 1: Love you, too.