VENDOR SPOTLIGHT

‘Contributor’ vendor Josh H. trades hotel rooms for an apartment after two years between housing

BY JUSTIN WAGNER

After spending two years without a consistent roof overhead, Josh Humphries can finally breathe a sigh of relief in an apartment of his own.

“Hey, there’s no place like home; I’m happy, cool and comfortable,” said Humphries. “It’s thanks to the help of The Contributor. Without them, I wouldn’t be here.”

Originally from Illinois, Humphries has worked as a vendor for The Contributor for nearly 12 years, rendering him seniority and experience within the community.

“It’s been cool, been meeting nice people, stuff like that. It’s been awesome. I’ve got good customers that take care of me,” he said.

During that time, selling the paper provided him with opportunities and friendships alike, COVID-19 left last year’s streets unpeopled by his regular commuter clientele.

“I remember a Sunday in the summer last year, man, I stood out there from 7 in the morning ‘til maybe 3 in the evening, only made $16 on all of that,” he said. “It was rough.”

With dwindling opportunities and a world entering global shutdown, Humphries found his best bet was to bounce between hotels and temporary living situations until things improved.

Over the last year, though, Humphries has been able to restore his regular sales as the number of people walking to work and school steadily stabilizes.

“Oh, it’s been getting way better,” he explained. “With kids going back to school and all that, it’s way better.”

Only a week into his new home, Humphries isn’t sure what his plans are moving forward, he said — but having a place to hone his love for cooking and reliably watch a football game now and then are fonts of comfort, even if he’s still in the process of furnishing the rooms.

“I love to cook, I love to eat,” Humphries said. “I don’t have pots and pans yet, but it’s coming!”

That comfort and fluidity has been Humphries’ resilience over the last several years, and with those days finally behind him, solace can finally be traded for gratitude.

“It is what it is, that’s my saying. It is what it is,” he said.