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A pouring of support for senior flower vendors in South Los Angeles will help him return to Mexico and reunite with his family, he said.
Edmund, an 82-year-old street vendor who refused to share his last name, said flowers were always a part of his life. After he moved to the United States more than 50 years ago, it became a source of his income.
“This is how I pay rent,” he said in Spanish.
Edmund said he’s used to shattering street bending, and despite recent immigrant raids in Los Angeles, he’s working to provide his children. So when social worker Helen Alvarez bought a bouquet from him a week ago, she couldn’t help but worry.
“When I saw him, my heart just melted,” Alvarez said. “He reminded me of my grandpa. Even at his age, he was still hardworking and still wanting to offer himself. He was at risk of everything being outside.”
Fearing that Edmund would be targeted by federal agents, Alvarez decides to get to know him and help him.
“For me, he’s part of my family now because he doesn’t have a family here right now,” she said. “So he’s important to me.”
Alvarez set up a GoFundMe account on behalf of a street vendor and was able to raise $20,000 for him within a week. Edmund said he plans to retire from selling flowers to return to Mexico with his family.
“I think I’ll take a little rest,” he said.
Alvarez said that despite being alone in America, she has her driving force to help him out because she wants to know that he is important. She is now happy that an online fundraiser will help him reunite with his loved ones.
“We can’t wait for him to be with his family. I still hope to be able to connect with him,” she said.
Thankfully, Edmund said he was forever grateful for Alvarez’s help.
“She’s the kind of person you don’t find that easily,” he said.
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