Homeless man discovers, returns $3,300

[Amerigo Vespucci]

Homeless man discovers, returns $3,300

http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/local/articles/2010/11/18/20101118lost1118.html

When Dave Talley, a Tempe homeless man, found a backpack this month at the light-rail station near Rural Road and University Drive, his first thought was to look through the bag for the owner's identification or contact information. Instead, he found an envelope containing about $3,300 in cash.

The temptation to keep the money was almost overwhelming, he said. Then, his conscience kicked in.

"The reality set in that it wasn't my money and it needed to be turned over," he said.

There are countless things a man like Talley could have done with the money. A recovering drug addict, Talley lives in a system of shelters run by the Tempe Community Action Agency. He's trying to get back on his feet, juggling volunteering at the agency with part-time work.

"I could've done a lot of things with the money," he said, "but none of them would've been right."

[Uncle Joe]

1. Kicked and recommended.

Thanks for the thread, Amerigo Vespucci.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

2. That was beyond selfless...

Wow.

Good for him...

Recommended.

[Dyler Turden]

3. Dave Talley

You are a good man and I hope Karma finds its way to you swiftly.

[whathehell]

4. Hmmm...

If he couldn't find a name or any contact information, who did he "turn it over" to?

The cops?...Some others who HAD a home?


I know this is supposed to be "inspirational", and all...but it seems a little clueless to me.:eyes:

[Moosepoop]

11. Not so clueless

He called an employee of the Tempe Community Action Agency, which runs the shelters he has been staying in and where he volunteers. He turned the bag over to the employee.

The TCAA employee found a flash drive containing the owner's resume.

The TCAA employee called the owner.

The owner verified that all the money was still in the bag.

The owner had reported the lost bag to the police, but hadn't expected it to be found.

All the info is there at the link to the article that is included in the OP.

[whathehell]

12. Yes...I thought of that after I posted...There was a way to identify. n/t

[Subdivisions]

19. The whole explanation is in the article linked in the OP. You're name fits...

Whatthehell?

[whathehell]

21. Looking for someone to mindlessly drop your hostility on?

I didn't DEBATE the poster...I agreed with him/her..Duh.

My name is actually quite open to interpretation...Figures someone with a chip on his shoulder would translate it negatively...Please find someone else to bitch at..I'm not interested.:eyes:

[KansDem]

5. This isn't the first time this has happened...

Remember the NY cabbie who returned $21,000 that someone had left in his cab?

ABC

I wouldn't think cabbies make all that much money.

So why do homeless folks and those workers on the lower rungs of the economic ladder display honesty and integrity sorely missing in our "leaders" and economic elites?

[Robb]

15. It is the same phenomenon

...that makes it more likely for wealthy people to walk from their mortgages than homeowners with fewer means.

A good friend once sold his old truck to a down-on-his-luck neighbor for $500. $20/week payments were arranged. The buyer made every single one of them, often with change scraped together.

[rfranklin]

6. A Republican would have blamed the person who lost the backpack...

and spent the money to punish the loser for being so careless. It's called "personal responsibility."

[closeupready]

13. Ding, ding ding!!!! We have a winner, folks!

+1000

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

7. How trustworthy is the "leave with police and wait if the owner appears" route?

Is there a risk of crooked cops manufacturing a convenient "owner" when the deadline is about to expire?

[quinnox]

8. there comes a point where survival should be more important

than small moral scruples IMHO. In other words, I would have not blamed this man at all if he had kept the money and used it to get back on his feet.

[reggie the dog]

9. here is what i would have done and what i have done in similar situations

look for cash, any and all cash is now mine, sorry, i am poor, i earn about 900 euros a month, so 3300 dollars is 3 months salary.... after all cash, coins and all is out of the bag and in my stash spot at my house then i look for any jewels, cd's i like anything.... they become mine too. if there is an ID card that gets left in the backpack. then after anything of value to me is in my possession i would fill the sack with rocks and then when no one was looking, throw the sack into a river or lake. you may hate me for this but i really am not going to worry about someone losing some cash if they have enough to walk around with 3 months of my salaray in their backpack....

[Nye Bevan]

16. And I guess you'd spend it on your avatar?

What a guy! :yourock:

[reggie the dog]

17. 3300

would buy me over a kilo of good hash, i only smoke about 150 grams a year which in small allotments costs me about 750 euros, the kilo would get me a source of income as a dealer though. i know weed is expensive in the states but over here good hash goes for a maximum of 6 euros a gram. I would actually be happy with 3300 as i could pay the rent for 8 months, like this homeless guy should have done

[Ratty]

10. I like to think of myself as a very honest, good person

I always return money when a cashier makes a mistake and I've done some bigger things. But I'm not homeless. I don't know what I'd do if I were in his shoes. I think I'd have kept it.

[closeupready]

14. If there was a way to identify the owner, I would have returned it.

If not, i.e., just a big bag of cash, I'd have to think about it. Sort of like that film, Millions

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0366777/

[proteus_lives]

18. About the time for me.

But movie thinking also gets me along the lines of "what unsavory types might come looking for this money?"

[Subdivisions]

20. It's all explained in the article linked in the OP. n/t

[donco]

22. I hope he

got at least half of it as a reward.

[Ilsa]

23. I wish he would run against John McCain. nt

[maryf]

24. Did they have to mention that this honest man was a recovering drug addict?

continues the paradigm that homeless are all substance abusers (maybe 25% are, over 70% are not...), but also, its nobody's business...a man is honest and returns money he could have really used...huge kudos and blessings to him for that, his drug history isn't all that relevant...