Over the winter, three young homeless men volunteered to build a path through a nature reserve in York. In the process, they have gone some way to putting their own lives back on track.
 Graham Falconer (left), his brother Greg (right) and Andy's path (below) |
There is a nature reserve in York tucked between a council housing estate and the municipal rubbish processing plant. But from now on, the nature lovers of York will be able to enjoy it to its full extent. This is because a proper hardcore path has been build through St Nicholas' Fields.
And it's all largely down to the efforts of Andy Hubbard and brothers Graham and Greg Falconer.
The three met when they were all residents at the Peaseholme Centre for the Homeless. They became friends as soon as Andy moved in. He didn't have anything to eat and Graham shared his dinner with him. He says, "He treated me with respect and I gave him respect back".
Building the path was Andy's idea originally. He dropped in at the council estate when they were looking for volunteers. He immediately thought that this was an excellent project for himself and his two friends.
It turned out to be a fork in the road for them. Graham says, "It sounds silly, but it's amazing what something as simple as building a path can do for your self-esteem".
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