Current Appeal

Mark usually arrives at Friends of Night People with a quiet companion at his side, a gentle dog named Daisy. If you spend a few minutes with him, you notice two things quickly. First, he greets people like old friends. Second, he is almost always helping someone.

That’s just who Mark is.

“I like to help people,” he says simply.

Mark was born in Buffalo, but his childhood was anything but stable. His father died when he was just four years old, and Mark entered the foster care system. He moved from home to home across Western New York, attending nine different schools before finally graduating high school.

Despite the constant change, Mark held onto something important. He wanted to be someone who helps others.

“I try to live a chivalrous life,” he says. “Being a decent person doesn’t cost anything.”

Mark first came to Friends of Night People looking for help just over a year ago after separating from his wife after the devastating loss of their baby. But now, he’s just as likely to be found helping someone else. Mark hasn’t just been a guest. He has become a regular volunteer, helping other guests access showers and laundry and pitching in wherever he can. Volunteering has given him something powerful: routine, purpose, and a way to keep moving forward.

“It keeps me focused,” he says. “And I get to help other people who are going through hard times too.”

Like many people experiencing homelessness, Mark says the hardest part isn’t just the uncertainty of where your next meal will come from. It’s the way the world can make you feel invisible.

“People walk past you and won’t even make eye contact,” he says quietly. “They look at you like you’re not even a person.”

At Friends of Night People, that changed.
Here, Mark found people who listened. Staff and volunteers treated him with dignity. A place where he could talk, be heard, and feel like he mattered.
“It feels like a family here,” he says. “Having people who care and who will listen makes all the difference.”

Now, Mark is on the brink of something he’s been hoping for: a home of his own.
His housing is about to come through, and when he talks about it, the relief in his voice is unmistakable.
“I’m happy… and a little overwhelmed,” he admits. “But mostly it’s a huge relief.”
What he looks forward to most isn’t the apartment itself. It’s what that home will mean for his son.
Mark is the father of a young son, and his dream is to bring them back together under one roof and give him the stability he never had growing up. He talks about simple things, trips to museums, family vacations, and making memories together.

“That’s true wealth,” Mark says. “Being happy and at peace with the people who matter most to you.”

Because of help from people like you, Mark is getting a second chance, not just at housing, but at rebuilding his life and bringing his family back together.