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Man Raises Money For Homeless 'Angel' Who Rescued And Cared For His Missing Dog

July 20, 2018

"Angels walk amongst us..." Rick Moonbeam Darge wrote on GoFundMe.

Darge created the crowdfunding page for a homeless man named James who cared for his dog Maya after she went missing.

Credit: Go Fund Me

The 9-month-old rat terrier had run away from home and crossed paths with James who is living out of his car in East Hollywood.

James, who does not own a phone, noticed the number on Maya's dog tag and tracked down a phone to call Darge and let him know his dog was safe and in good care.

Darge shared the following on GoFundMe:

"This angel man named James told me that his street name was coincidentally 'Canine'. This man loves dogs and as soon as he got Maya, he fell in love. He's been living out of his car with his pal Andy for months, just trying to get by. James recently lost his own dog a week ago and has been torn up about it ever since. When Maya ran away, it didn't take her long to join the company of some nearby homeless guys setup near my office in East Hollywood. One of those guys was friends with James and knew how hurt he was, so decided to gift Maya over to him, I'm guessing so he could keep her forever. After a few hours, James pulled Maya's harness off and noticed her dog tag with her name and my number on it. James didn't have a cellphone so he had to wait until the next day to call me. I can't truly express the emotions I felt when I finally got that call. I could feel the warmth of James' heart through that conversation. He said that once he saw that she belonged to someone, he was devastated and knew what I was going through.

One thing that stuck out for me the most is when my Mom and I were screaming for joy while holding Maya, James' buddy Andy kept saying to him, 'Look at what you did James. Look at their faces man. You did this.' While Andy is saying this, I see a proud James, tears in his eyes, soaking up this moment of love. I saw a man that was at a crossroads in life. This was a redemption day for him to do the right thing. To be the hero. I felt it. He felt it. We all felt it. It was so powerful of a moment. With tears in his eyes, James told me to pray for him. This is my way of praying for James. So many of you were touched by this story and have asked me how you can help send James some good will. This is the way. I think in James' mind we will never see each other ever again. I have other plans in mind. If you have anything to give today, tomorrow, the next day, please consider donating. A small financial contribution to this man will go way further than you think. I want to help this man. I want to let him know that people are touched by him and his actions so that he can continue to spread that to others. Change starts with mindset. It starts with one person, one at a time. We are all equal and everyone deserves love and to know that they are loved. This entire 36 hour ordeal from separation to reuniting showed me just how much love is amongst all of those around me, both near and far. I love you all and thank you for giving me the best birthday present ever. You gave me hope. Now lets give some of that hope to James. He deserves it."

As of Friday morning, Darge has raised more than $4,000 for James thanks to hundreds of donations.