Joe Comfort (New Haven homeless man)
Joe Comfort | |
|---|---|
 Undated photo of Comfort | |
| Born | June 22, 1954 New Haven, Connecticut, U.S.A. |
| Died | September 14, 2024 (aged 70) New Haven, Connecticut, U.S.A. |
Joe Comfort (June 22, 1954 - September 14, 2024) was an American homeless man who lived in New Haven, Connecticut. He was and always will be a New Haven "street legend".[1] He was featured in the Local Characters Trading Cards for New Haven, exhibited in 2005.[2] He earned money doing odd jobs including raking leaves, window washing, and repairs.[3] He also worked for Yale fraternities, cleaning up after parties.[1]
Joe Comfort was at one point a carpenter for the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, and claimed to at one point be a licensed plumber. He attributes his lack of employment to potential employers' fear of having to pay workers compensation if his medical problems recur.[4]
Advocacy
[edit]Joe Comfort has spoken out at public hearings against welfare cuts in the state of Connecticut.[4] He has also spoken out against harassment of homeless people by the police.[5]
External links
[edit]- A video of Joe Comfort talking about himself
- Transcript of a committee hearing in the state of Connecticut, at which Joe Comfort spoke Archived 2012-02-07 at the Wayback Machine
References
[edit]- ^ a b Hayden, Pat (October 2007). "Cleaning House Fraternity brothers hire homeless help". The New Journal Magazine at Yale. Vol. 40, no. 2.
- ^ "Local Characters Trading Cards for New Haven". lesliekuo.com.
- ^ "COLUMN: City government and business must help homeless". HighBeam Research. Archived from the original on 2011-05-16.
- ^ a b "Hartford Plan on Welfare Is Met With Tales of Woe". The New York Times.
- ^ "YHHAP dedicates candlelight vigil to the city's homeless". Yale Daily News. Archived from the original on 2008-10-15. Retrieved 2007-11-29.
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