
Joe Mullin, 51, commonly know as "Sicilian Joe" on the streets, waits for a bus to come on Wealthy Street in Grand Rapids, MI, Nov. 17, 2014. Mullin takes a bus when he can afford it, in order to get to Frank's Party Store in downtown Grand Rapids to buy alcohol. "I'm not going to lie. When I get a lick (money), I use it to go buy a drink and then use the remainder for food," explains Mullin.

Joe Mullin, 51, stands on the side of the 131 highway exit ramp with a sign that reads "Homeless, Hungry, and Disabled," in hopes of getting some money to buy alcohol in Grand Rapids, MI, Nov.17, 2014.

Joe Mullin, 51, stands outside God's Soup Kitchen in search for the "cigarette guy" who rolls cigarettes and sells them for cheap on the streets of Grand Rapids, MI, Nov. 17, 2014. "We have a good community out here. A lot of us try to have one another's back. We have to," says Mullin.

Joe Mullin, crutches away from the Shell Gas Station after being rejected for asking to get change for a ten dollar bill in Grand Rapids, MI, Nov. 17, 2014. "I can't imagine she doesn't have change in her register for a ten dollar bill. It doesn't bother me though; I know I'm the prettiest face in the sea," says Mullin.

Kimberly Vanderiest, 51, and Joe Mullin, 51, kiss outside of God's Soup Kitchen in Grand Rapids, MI, Nov. 17, 2014. Vanderiest and Mullin have been dating for just under 7 years. Vanderiest lives in an apartment through an outreach program, while Mullin lives on the streets and stays in shelters at night.

Kim Vanderiest, 51, and her boyfriend, Joe Mullin, 51, sit down for a meal at God's Kitchen, a soup kitchen in Grand Rapids, MI, Nov. 17, 2014. Vanderiest and Mullin usually see each other once a day for a meal or a cup of coffee before parting separate ways.

Kimberly Vanderiest, 51, walks up the front steps of her apartment building after having lunch with her boyfriend, Joe, at 72 Sheldon Ferguson Apartments, in Grand Rapids, MI, Nov. 16, 2014. "I wish he had a form of identity so that he could stay inside and live with me," says Vanderiest.

Kimberly Vanderiest keeps drawings and little notes that Joe has given her on her dresser mirror. "I put them on my mirror so I can see them everyday and think of how much he loves me. I keep every single thing he has given me and thank God everyday to have him in my life," says Vanderiest.

Kimberly Vanderiest, 51, crochets a blanket in her room to pass the time, in her apartment at Ferguson Apartments, in Grand Rapids, MI, Nov. 16, 2014. "I picked up crochet to keep my hands busy and to help calm my nerves before going to sleep at night. I pray and worry constantly about Joe. I don't want him to die out there from being drunk and in the cold," says Vanderiest.

Joe Mullin, 51, walks across the street to stand on the side of Highway 131 exit ramp, in sixteen degree weather, to hold a sign in hopes to get some money, in Grand Rapids, MI, Nov. 17, 2014. "This location is where I get the most licks (money). Usually I get something within thirty minutes, to an hour. This cold weather just gets harder and harder to stand out in with my arthritis," says Mullin.










Joe Mullin, 51, commonly know as "Sicilian Joe" on the streets, waits for a bus to come on Wealthy Street in Grand Rapids, MI, Nov. 17, 2014. Mullin takes a bus when he can afford it, in order to get to Frank's Party Store in downtown Grand Rapids to buy alcohol. "I'm not going to lie. When I get a lick (money), I use it to go buy a drink and then use the remainder for food," explains Mullin.
Joe Mullin, 51, stands on the side of the 131 highway exit ramp with a sign that reads "Homeless, Hungry, and Disabled," in hopes of getting some money to buy alcohol in Grand Rapids, MI, Nov.17, 2014.
Joe Mullin, 51, stands outside God's Soup Kitchen in search for the "cigarette guy" who rolls cigarettes and sells them for cheap on the streets of Grand Rapids, MI, Nov. 17, 2014. "We have a good community out here. A lot of us try to have one another's back. We have to," says Mullin.
Joe Mullin, crutches away from the Shell Gas Station after being rejected for asking to get change for a ten dollar bill in Grand Rapids, MI, Nov. 17, 2014. "I can't imagine she doesn't have change in her register for a ten dollar bill. It doesn't bother me though; I know I'm the prettiest face in the sea," says Mullin.
Kimberly Vanderiest, 51, and Joe Mullin, 51, kiss outside of God's Soup Kitchen in Grand Rapids, MI, Nov. 17, 2014. Vanderiest and Mullin have been dating for just under 7 years. Vanderiest lives in an apartment through an outreach program, while Mullin lives on the streets and stays in shelters at night.
Kim Vanderiest, 51, and her boyfriend, Joe Mullin, 51, sit down for a meal at God's Kitchen, a soup kitchen in Grand Rapids, MI, Nov. 17, 2014. Vanderiest and Mullin usually see each other once a day for a meal or a cup of coffee before parting separate ways.
Kimberly Vanderiest, 51, walks up the front steps of her apartment building after having lunch with her boyfriend, Joe, at 72 Sheldon Ferguson Apartments, in Grand Rapids, MI, Nov. 16, 2014. "I wish he had a form of identity so that he could stay inside and live with me," says Vanderiest.
Kimberly Vanderiest keeps drawings and little notes that Joe has given her on her dresser mirror. "I put them on my mirror so I can see them everyday and think of how much he loves me. I keep every single thing he has given me and thank God everyday to have him in my life," says Vanderiest.
Kimberly Vanderiest, 51, crochets a blanket in her room to pass the time, in her apartment at Ferguson Apartments, in Grand Rapids, MI, Nov. 16, 2014. "I picked up crochet to keep my hands busy and to help calm my nerves before going to sleep at night. I pray and worry constantly about Joe. I don't want him to die out there from being drunk and in the cold," says Vanderiest.
Joe Mullin, 51, walks across the street to stand on the side of Highway 131 exit ramp, in sixteen degree weather, to hold a sign in hopes to get some money, in Grand Rapids, MI, Nov. 17, 2014. "This location is where I get the most licks (money). Usually I get something within thirty minutes, to an hour. This cold weather just gets harder and harder to stand out in with my arthritis," says Mullin.