Charles Walker Jr

"The sidewalks of my world, for the most part, have often been my only friend, my safe place, where I hung my head, staring only at the pavement as I walked to and from school as a small boy. Most often, I was alone, ashamed, and scared. I was an outcast.

My life has been fairly typical I suppose. I was born and raised in the heart of Oregon’s Mid-Willamette Valley. I got bullied at school growing up. Learned to have a healthy sense of humor. I tried to fit in, got married, and started a family. After 7 years I came out to my friends and family. I once believed that my sexuality, depression, and anxiety were my greatest enemies, crippling me many times throughout my life. Yet, that’s what it took, along with addiction to provide Love (my epithet for the Universe, God, Creator, etc) with the tools necessary to lead me on an enlightening journey into the hearts of the homeless.

Through experiences working in the medical field, I became somewhat comfortable with serving the neglected outcasts of our society. At the age of 58, working as a Peer Support Specialist with homeless men, I attended seminars by Social Justice Advocates like Donna Beegle. During her seminars, I came to realize that I feared people living on the streets, in alleyways, and under bridges. I realized I was actually taught to fear them while growing up; by my family, peers, and society as a whole. We truly didn't know any better, loathing the unfortunates was the socially acceptable worldview back in the day.

In coming to a place that was the lowest and darkest point in my life (homeless and drug-addicted); it took all that darkness for me to see a light and something unique in each of the outcasts of our society. As I began to recover in 2016, I found myself writing about my adventures and posting them on a social network. I simply wanted to share my joy with friends and family. The response was overwhelming. They all asked me to continue sharing my stories. Not long afterward, I was encouraged to write to write "When Sidewalks Smile." To this day I share my loving experiences on social networks; helping the world to see the beauty of When Sidewalks Smile."

Poppa Chuck began writing about his life experiences while in Africa working with AIDS orphans in 2010. He served as an Office Specialist and Manager in hospitals and Medical Clinics for 17 years and as a Peer Support Specialist working with homeless men before retiring. He serves on Transition Project’s Peer Advisory Committee, Portland’s largest provider of shelter programs, resources, and services. He enjoys a full life loving his family, daughters, grandkids, and extended street families. Poppa Chuck lives the life of a Rogue Street Community Advocate spending countless hours serving, loving, and building relationships with Portland’s street hearts, the outcasts of our world.