Homeless for 5 years, here is Justin and Baby Sheila’s story

VICKSBURG, Miss. (VDN) — Baby Sheila ran up to me on Thursday outside the Post Office. She was heading to McDonald’s on Iowa with her master, Justin Harris, 35, from Little Rock, Arkansas. Baby Sheila, a mixed-breed with a welcoming smile and a friendly demeanor, was polite to me and let me pet her for a second.

Justin asked if they could hitch a ride in the back to McDonald’s. So they hopped in, and we started some small talk. Justin saw my reporter’s badge and said, “Are you the news?” I chuckled and explained that I do local news. Baby Sheila was all about the scenery as Justin and I got to know each other. I asked how he ended up homeless. “I’m an orphan. I ain’t got no family to fall back on. So when I hit a hard time, like losing my car in Little Rock, Arkansas, I fell to the curb.”

When asked how he ended up in Vicksburg, Justin said, “Well, I’ve traveled all the way from Little Rock to Natchez to tell an old man thank you for teaching me everything I know about surviving homeless. And well, he passed away two years ago before I could get down here. Some kids shot him in the back of the head, back in Natchez. Deon Jackson, ‘Guitar Man’, that’s what everybody used to call him back in Natchez. He was homeless for a long time. He taught me everything I know about surviving.”

According to Harris, people in Vicksburg have treated him well. “Better than Little Rock. I like Vicksburg.” After a short pause, he said, “You might have a couple of people here I wouldn’t mind snatching out of their cars, but other than that, everybody is good. Good people.”

You can find him near the front of TJ Maxx or PetSmart in the Kroger Plaza on Pemberton. “That’s where I hang out, we’re kind of famous, well, Baby Sheila is anyway,” he said with pride. Harris said he needs to get his ID updated and find a job. “I’m a carpenter, mechanic, construction worker, but I need to get my ID. Otherwise, they’ll have to pay under the table or something.”

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 “For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty, and you gave me nothing to drink.” – Matthew 25:42