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Twelve years ago, I arrived in Central Florida from Puerto Rico. I had heard of a job opportunity and decided to pursue it. But it never became a reality. I quickly learned that being alone without resources in an unfamiliar city was not a comfortable situation to be in.

Once my limited funds ran out I became homeless and spent a year and a half living on the streets of Orlando. Apart from feeling not being noticed and missing my family, I had to face another challenge—hunger.

For the first time in my life, I, as a foreign man, who had lived my life in the relative comfort of the middle class, understood the desperation someone feels when they don’t get enough to eat. I clearly remembered having run a distance of more than 7 miles on many occasions just to make it to a local feeding program before they closed at 7 pm.

Once the need for food was met, the next challenge would arise—where to find a place to sleep for the night. Fortunately, local programs like the Coalition for the Homeless, Second Harvest Food Bank and the Wayne Densch Center were an important part of my ability to survive my painful experience.

With the assistance of these programs, I was accepted by a college scholarship program through the Coalition and obtained two degrees from Valencia.

My experience has helped me understand that devoting my life to helping others offers lasting rewards. Today, I am employed as Childhood Hunger Programs Manager at Second Harvest Food Bank and oversee the summer feeding, Hi-Five Kids Pack, and Kids Café programs. I am so proud to be able to distribute food resources to those wonderful programs and help hundreds more like me.