Vendor A. Allen on Honoring our Veterans

My heart goes out to the African Americans who served in the armed forces of the States of America. I said the States of America because even before it became the United States of America, I think of Crispus Attucks, the first American Black killed in the American Revolutionary War, in the Boston Massacre of March 5, 1770. He is my first Black hero to serve in the military. I have quite a few.

Bringing it home to Street- Wise, there’s our very own [Magazine Sales Specialist] Ron Madere, who works what we call the “cage,” selling the vendors papers. He has the discipline of working in the cage for 17 years and as far as I know, no unexcused absences, and I’ve been with the organization for 10 years. That’s some discipline and I am sure he gained it from serving in the Army.

Let’s not forget [Vendor] Quincy Hunter, a vendor who has more than 10 years with StreetWise. He’s on the vendor advisory board, very dedicated, a friend and a faithful vendor. He is with StreetWise every day because he is that kind of guy.

Let’s not forget [Vendor] Russell Adams, who, when I came to StreetWise, was my mentor. He’s a great salesperson – at one point, our top salesperson. His dedication and discipline I’m sure gave him a fast start because of the knowledge he obtained from serving in the Armed Forces of the United States.

Many African Americans served and thought to be serving their country they would come back and be treated with more respect, only to find that Black Lives didn’t Matter. It must have been a hurtful thing.

[Vendor] Robert Pope served in the Air Force during the Korean War. He was not only abused as a Black man, he never received all of his benefits. My heart really goes out to this veteran. He suffered and found the resilience to bounce back from the trauma he suffered as a Black man. His coming to Street- Wise as a veteran says a lot about his ability to bounce back. That’s a real asset I am sure he learned from serving in the armed forces.

There are a lot of negative things that happened after returning home but there are benefits I can see in working with these gentlemen at StreetWise. Most of these benefits – discipline, dedication, determination, forgiveness, guts, leadership, patience, resilience – cannot be bought with money. I thank you all for your demonstration of these priceless qualities.

StreetWise has helped me in many ways, but this week, I am grateful for what it has shown through our very own StreetWise veterans.