'Good man' homeless after fire continues helping others
DETROIT - A Detroit man is left with almost nothing after his home of more than 50 years went up in flames.
He's lost so much, but his spirits remain high.
"He's Uncle Harry for the whole neighborhood not just the block, the whole neighborhood," said neighbor Johnny Robbins. "He does it all."
The man known as the caretaker of this Russell Street neighborhood is in need of a little help himself.
Last Monday Harry Bynum came home to find his Detroit house on fire. A space heater he used to keep warm was accidentally left on leaving his house unlivable.
"I was kind of devastated," he said.
Harry lost pretty much everything in that fire except the shirt on his own back and his lawnmower. The next day he did he does something he always does for this neighborhood - he mowed his neighbors' lawns.
"I didn't bring it in because I had been working," Bynum said.
Instead of worrying about what he lost, Bynum grabbed his lawn mower and went to work.
"That's Harry that's Harrison," said neighbor Jewel Frasier. "Very dependable."
"He keeps the whole block nice," said Robbins. "Look up and down the street he does all of this."
"He is very is very helpful," said Frasier. "He shovels the snow, everything you ask."
"I keep working just to keep myself going," Bynum said. "To keep myself busy and keep myself from being depressed and stuff like that."
Bynum is homeless. The 63-year-old has received a little help from the Salvation Army and American Red Cross. Currently, he is staying with friends until he can find a permanent place to live.
But every day he comes back to his Russell Street house and to his neighbors, who he says he will continue to help tidy up their yards, mow their lawn and fix what's broken.
"We just have try to pull together and hopefully get some help for him," Robbins said.
He may have lost everything he owns but Harry Bynum hasn't lost his selfless spirit.
"Sometimes you get your blessings back by helping other people," he said. "That's the way I feel."