If the week has made you question if good people still exist, or you’re in search of a daily dose of charitable inspiration, meet the West Louisville teen who can teach us all a lesson in the power of listening.
Laron Tunstill Jr. (a.k.a. Ron Ron) is a 14-year-old boy from Louisville, Kentucky, who has inspired thousands of people through a photograph of him giving his shoes to a homeless man which went viral on social media.
The teen went out on Labor Day to distribute food to homeless with Jason Reynolds, 30, founder of PurpMe, a local non-profit group that aims to uplift communities.
"We saw a homeless man who had holes in his shoes, and, without hesitation, Ron Ron took the shoes off his feet and gave it away," Reynolds, 30, told ABC News today. "They sat and talked to each other. The homeless man explained that he had gone through a lot of loss and hurt in his life, and Ron Ron was very moved by his story."
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Turnstill has been no stranger to struggle himself growing up in a rough area where crimes like shootings, and vandalization are frequent occurrences.
“I was a bad person,” Tunstill , Jr., told WHAS. “I used to steal, and all that kind of stuff.”
Reynolds, reached out to the teen three years ago during what he calls, “his bad phase,” and became a mentor to Turnstill. "Now, he's the one mentoring other kids," Reynolds told ABC.
The picture which has 11,000 likes, has been shared over 8,000 times and has now reached over one million people, also has hundreds of comments celebrating PurpMe and calling Tunstill an “inspiration to others.”
“I’m just trying to do right,” Tunstill told WAVE. “I’m trying to change the world.”
A GoFundMe page has been set up since the image was put out. There individuals can donate to PurpMe and the work teens like Turnstill are doing within the platform. To donate, click here.
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