VIDEO: Homeless man putting a smile on motorists’ faces
Steve Loock wants to make the world a brighter place, one step at a time.
A local man with a thirst for life is trying to make a difference in the lives of residents in Pretoria during tough economic times, by putting a smile on their faces in peak time traffic.
Steve Loock, a 57-year-old former journalist has painted a board reminding people to smile even through their troubles to bring happiness to all motorists who see him on the road in Pretoria.
“I have a very colourful background,” Steve told Rekord. “Yes, I sleep on the street, but I don’t beg for money. My story starts long before my hard years started. As a journalist, I made a name for myself as a court reporter. However, things took a turn for the worst when I resigned at the newspaper I worked at and ended up working at a dispatch-and-receiving warehouse for Telkom in Centurion. Unfortunately, I got retrenched in 2013 and I struggled to put my life back together after that,” says Steve.
ALSO READ: NEWSFLASH: Well-known homeless mother from the west dies
With his expressive eyes and gritty personality, Steve lost everything when his car was stolen in Waverley a few years back, and has struggled to find permanent employment since.
“My ID document, along with all other important documentation like my life’s work was stolen along with my car. As I was out of work, I couldn’t afford to buy a new car. As a result, I couldn’t get back into the working game, so I ended up working as a gardener in a man’s yard, living in a Wendy house on the premises. He eventually had to sell the house in 2015. Since that time, I’ve been living and working on the street.”
Steve found that petrol garages in the area were the perfect spot to sleep when it rained, but slept on any spot he could find during the night.
“Fortunately I’ve never been a victim of crime. Nobody has ever tried to rob me, even while I’m sleeping. The city is filled with good Samaritans, and I’ve been fortunate enough to have enough money each day, to buy food and newspapers to keep up with local and international news.”
Steve is a former journalist, but his career came to a sudden halt almost 19 years ago. After that, he had various other jobs, but decided to focus on creating his own newspaper and writing a book on his experiences on the street.
“I understand that my life is at a low point, but I have faith that it will someday change and I will start working again. I have an entrepreneurial mind, I’m just really struggling to get my foundation off the ground.”
ALSO READ: Sunnyside planning Christmas feast for homeless
Asked what he has learned on the street in the last three years, Steve tells of the many homeless people he comes across on the street and explains that hygiene is one of the biggest challenges.
“I feel that hygiene is a basic human right, and we really struggle to find places in Pretoria to wash up, take a bath or just brush our teeth. It becomes hard when you constantly have to ask petrol station employees to use lavatories.”
“One day when I have my life back on track, I’ll be publishing a book about my experience, and I aim to work with the municipality on building a wash-up hub for homeless people,” Steve explains.
Steve has a fire inside his heart like no other. He is determined to live his life positively and would like to spread some happy cheer along the way.
“I would very much like to be helped; I am a hard worker, but not having a roof over my head, does make it harder to move forward.”
ALSO READ: Blanket drive provides warmth for the homeless
“My smile boards are very popular, and it gives me great satisfaction to see people smile when they see me next to the road. Every friendly gesture, wave, smile, hoot or laugh gives me the strength to continue, get up in the morning and do it all over again the next day,” Steve concludes.
If you would like to get in touch with Steve, please contact Rekord newspaper for more information.
WATCH:
Do you have more information about the story? Please send us an email to editorial@rekord.co.za or phone us on 083 625 4114.
For free breaking and community news, visit Rekord’s websites:
For more news and interesting articles, like Rekord on Facebook, follow us on Twitter or Instagram
