Headlines on PNJ.com: This is the news from Wednesday, August 14
Alabama man stranded in Pensacola by helicopter after stroke, construction project planned near Highway 98 and Blue Angel Parkway, details of new sports bar
Derrick Taylor is not homeless and never has been, but he got a taste of what it’s like to be alone and helpless on the streets after a series of unfortunate incidents took him from his home in Birmingham, Alabama, to a hospital in Pensacola.
The 61-year-old man says the experience opened his eyes to a side of life that he had not seen before and does not want to see again.
It started on Sunday, August 4, when Taylor drove to his parents’ hometown of Thomasville, Alabama, about an hour and a half north of Mobile, to take care of family matters. His parents are both deceased and while he was in Thomasville, Taylor decided to visit his father’s grave. On the way to the cemetery, Taylor suffered a stroke.
“That’s where they found me, on the side of the road next to the church. It was so hot and I was walking. I had a small blood clot in my brain. And then someone hammered me really hard in the chest,” Taylor said, touching his chest with his fist. “I woke up and I was on clouds. I thought, ‘Oh God, am I dead?’ I’m serious. I’ve never been in a helicopter before. I just closed my eyes really quickly because I was on clouds and I thought I was dead.”
Taylor was not on his way to his Maker. To his surprise, he found himself on a medical plane en route to Ascension Sacred Heart in Pensacola. He was released after about a week, but the return home proved almost as traumatic as his stroke.
The stroke left him partially paralyzed on the right side of his body. He can no longer use his arm and his leg and foot are fixed at an awkward angle, making walking difficult. In addition to these injuries, Taylor was already unable to work due to back problems and has lung health problems.
“My breathing is bad,” Taylor said. “I can’t stand for long. I can’t walk very far. When I eat, I have to stop and catch my breath. So I still have a lot of medical issues to take care of, but I have insurance.”
What he didn’t have was a way to get home. Taylor said he was released from the hospital with a bus pass that would take him to a local homeless shelter, even though he is not homeless. He has an apartment in Alabama, but he lives alone and has no close, living relatives. He said he spent another week at the shelter, looking for a way back to Alabama.
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“The day before yesterday I almost fainted,” Taylor said. “Saturday and Sunday they sent one out during the day. I was lying on the sidewalk. That’s when this guy saw me. I was in trouble. He threw water on my face and head and cooled me down. I thought I was going to have to go back to the hospital. The sun was beating down on me. I was so bad, I was covered in ants and I couldn’t even roll out. I’ve never experienced anything like that before and it was hard for me to deal with because I’ve never been homeless because I have a home. I’ve always had a home.”
The shelter put Taylor in touch with Project Reconnect, the Escambia County-funded program that provides homeless or distressed people with a way to get home or to a place where they can find support. He got a ride to Ministry Village in Olive, which administers the program, and staff there arranged for him to take a bus back to Birmingham on Tuesday morning.
“I still don’t understand why they took me to Florida,” Taylor said. “I know (the University of Alabama at Birmingham) has a helicopter launch pad. I would have been home. What I’m most worried about is that I’m gone for almost two weeks, people are watching and my neighborhood isn’t that good, but I’m keeping to myself. I don’t want someone breaking in and stealing my stuff. It’s been hard for me.”
Taylor said he is incredibly grateful for the opportunity to return home. He said staying at the homeless shelter and feeling helpless showed him what life is like for the homeless, and that is not a life he wants for himself.
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Drayton Smith, executive director of Ministry Village at Olive, agreed that Taylor’s experience was tough, but pointed out that many people become homeless because they experienced a series of unfortunate events they did not expect and lacked the resources to get out of the dire situation.
“He very easily could have been left with no way to return home and become homeless here in Pensacola,” Smith said. “It happens all the time. We see people all the time who come here on promises and stuff, and they get here and it doesn’t work out, and they become homeless because they don’t have any money, they don’t have any support. And before they know it, they’re homeless without ever wanting to be homeless.”
Escambia County and other stakeholders support Project Reconnect to help people like Taylor.
“I appreciate what you all are doing for me,” Taylor told the Ministry Village staff. “This is the only good thing that has happened since this whole ordeal. I don’t want to live here. I want to go home. I’m grateful for everything.”
