Faithwire
  • Watch
  • Go!
  • Podcasts
  • Newsletter
  • Contact Us
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Instagram
  • SCOTUS
  • Life
  • Religious Liberty
  • News
  • Politics
  • Faith
  • Opinion

‘It Was a Miracle’: Good Samaritan Helps Homeless Man and His Dog, And Now Things Are Looking Up

Stock photo from Nick Fewings/Unsplash
Stock photo from Nick Fewings/Unsplash
Share Tweet
By Tré Goins-Phillips
Editor

January 28, 2022

Susan McGrath was driving into a McDonald’s one recent Sunday morning — a regular part of her routine — when she spotted something out of the ordinary: a man, who appeared to be homeless, accompanied by a dog.

Speaking to the Asbury Park Press, McGrath said she bought the man, clad in a flannel jacket, and his pet half a dozen breakfast sandwiches. When she drove around to give them to Dustin Maggard and his dog, Surfer Baby, he began to cry.

Listen to the latest episode of the Faithwire podcast 👇

Maggard and Surfer Baby came to Berkeley Township, New Jersey, from Florida in the summer of 2020 in hopes of being reunited with his teenage son and the boy’s mother. Things didn’t work out, though, and Maggard was kicked out of the house Jan. 8.

The proverbial fences he was hoping to mend just kept falling apart.

In 2014, Maggard’s then-fiancée Ashley Wilson died in a tragic car accident, catapulting the now-42-year-old man into a despairing depression. In fact, that’s how he ended up with Surfer Baby, a then-puppy gifted to him eight years ago by friends hoping she would help him through the mourning process.

“She saved my life,” Maggard said of his four-legged companion. “Losing my fiancée, it crushed me. I was drinking myself to death. I never would have survived. Now I couldn’t imagine my life without [Surfer Baby].”

While no police report was filed, Maggard was reportedly kicked out of the house over a domestic dispute, which resulted in a temporary restraining order being issued against him.

And that’s part of the reason why he ended up sleeping on the streets behind a strip mall.

The man said police officers in Berkeley Township tried to find a shelter for him, but none would accommodate Surfer Baby.

“There’s no way I’ll ever give her up,” he said of his pup. “I was on the verge of hypothermia, but there was no way I was giving up this dog.”

Then came a good Samaritan

Soon thereafter, Maggard met McGrath.

The good Samaritan took to Facebook to share her newfound friend’s story. Then, after the Asbury Park Press shared the details of their encounter, McGrath’s email was flooded with other kind-hearted people eager to help out.

In total, McGrath received 200 emails that resulted in $3,000 going to help Maggard and Surfer Baby.

“There’s good people out there,” McGrath said. “People are still reaching out. We raised enough money for him, and I told people to donate to either a homeless shelter or a dog shelter.”

Maggard and Surfer Baby stayed in a motel room for a week before McGrath rented a car for them, and they traveled to Tennessee to start fresh.

Although Maggard has tested positive for COVID-19, he is recovering fine and his symptoms are mild. As soon as he’s back to full health, he’s planning on beginning some of the job interviews he’s already lined up with local warehouses and stores.

He also plans to pay McGrath back for the rental.

Looking back, Maggard credits the kindness of strangers for motivating him to turn his life around.

“In that situation, it is very easy to allow yourself to get angry, which will just spiral everything downward,” he said. “There was so much support. I haven’t had a bit of anger.”

***As the number of voices facing big-tech censorship continues to grow, please sign up for Faithwire’s daily newsletter and download the CBN News app, developed by our parent company, to stay up-to-date with the latest news from a distinctly Christian perspective.***

Latest

  • Entertainment

    ‘The Chosen’ Begins Filming Season 4, Series to Be Translated into 600 Languages: ‘We’re Back’

  • Faith

    Weatherman Reveals Why He Prayed to Jesus On-Air as Deadly Tornado Hit: ‘God Helps People’

  • News

    ‘I Am Beyond Grateful’: Liberty University Names New President in Wake of Jerry Falwell Scandal

  • Faith

    EXCLUSIVE: Famous Activist Prays For Mass ‘Exodus’ of Clinic Workers With Launch of Powerful Good Friday Campaign

  • News

    Actor Mark Wahlberg Reveals Why He Moved Family Out of Hollywood: ‘It’s Really Giving the Kids a Chance to Thrive’


Sponsored
Sponsored

Newsletter
Signup

Sidebar

Recent Posts

  • ‘The Chosen’ Begins Filming Season 4, Series to Be Translated into 600 Languages: ‘We’re Back’
  • Weatherman Reveals Why He Prayed to Jesus On-Air as Deadly Tornado Hit: ‘God Helps People’
  • ‘I Am Beyond Grateful’: Liberty University Names New President in Wake of Jerry Falwell Scandal
  • EXCLUSIVE: Famous Activist Prays For Mass ‘Exodus’ of Clinic Workers With Launch of Powerful Good Friday Campaign
  • Actor Mark Wahlberg Reveals Why He Moved Family Out of Hollywood: ‘It’s Really Giving the Kids a Chance to Thrive’

Archives

  • March 2023
  • February 2023
  • January 2023
  • December 2022
  • November 2022
  • October 2022
  • September 2022
  • August 2022
  • July 2022
  • June 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • August 2021
  • July 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016

Categories

  • Christian Persecution
  • Coronavirus
  • culture
  • Culture
  • Entertainment
  • Faith
  • Faith
  • Family
  • George Floyd
  • Go!
  • Israel
  • Life
  • Life
  • Lifestyle
  • Media
  • Men
  • Mission Haiti
  • News
  • News
  • Opinion
  • P.O.V
  • Politics
  • Politics
  • Roe
  • Sponsored
  • Sports
  • Virtue
  • Women

Meta

  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org

Navigation

  • Watch
  • Go!
  • Podcasts
  • Newsletter
  • Contact Us
  • Staff
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Service

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Instagram

Subscribe to the Newsletter

Sign up to get our newsletter your inbox every day.

Newsletter Signup

Do you want to read
more articles like this?