Photo: Andrew Embury | CBC News
Theirs is an unusual friendship where both have gained unexpected benefits. David McDonald has found a home in Kim Cormier's backyard after six years of homelessness, thanks to Cormier's generosity, and she has found a friend she can laugh with. From owning a gas station with a six-figure income to losing his home, his car and facing homophobic violence on the streets, McDonald has seen it all. A chance meeting with Cormier changed all that when she invited him to live in her backyard. Being unable to take a regular job due to social anxiety, McDonald survives on the monthly $1,124 Ontario Disability Support Program payments and whatever he can pick up from the trash. "I don't use the services provided for [the] homeless because I feel that, although I'm homeless, other people are worse off than me," he says. Cormier has also raised $18,000 through an online campaign for a micro home for her friend, which he can use through the winter and take with him wherever he goes. "She's done more than I can ever say thank you for," says McDonald, to which Cormier has a simple reply: "He's part of the family now."
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