Homeless Man Accidentally Sells Rare Item For $20 To Antique Shop – Owner Hunts Him Down
Oct 30, 2020
Curiosity, Inc. is a small family-run antique shop in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Its owner, Alexander Archbold, is always on the hunt for the most unusual finds. This story from 2018 explains how Alexander and Adam, a homeless man, crossed paths, and is sure to restore your faith in humanity.
Be sure to reach the end of this article to see the full video :-)
Adam is what you'd call a "dumpster diver." He sorts through trash to find possible treasures. Then he asks Alexander if he wants them.
One day, Adam came into the shop carrying a plastic bag, reports CNN. Alexander looked through the bag to see if there was anything of value. He noticed that there was a picture of Bambi in a dirty old frame. It was the scene from the movie where Bambi is a new fawn and meets his forest friends.
apost.com
Alexander thought it was kind of interesting so he bought it for $20. Maybe he could up-sell it for $100. Then he examined the picture more closely. There was a certificate of authenticity on the back, dating from 1937. The picture wasn't just a sweet drawing: it was an actual image used by the film's animation department!
Alexander did some investigating. There were a couple of galleries who valued the image at $3,500. It was clear that Adam deserved at least half the money: he'd been the one to find it, after all! Alexander ultimately sold the picture on eBay for $3,700 CAD ($2,780 USD).
He then tried to hunt down Adam. The search proved difficult: since Adam is homeless, he has no address or phone number. So Alexander drove around Edmonton for about 2 weeks to try and find him. Alexander finally met up with Adam to give him the $1,700 he'd earned. That wasn't all: he also created a GoFundMe to give Adam a plane ticket to his home in Ontario, and a place to stay off the streets.
The fundraiser got almost $8,000 over its $10,000 goal. Adam's still kind of pinching himself. He's so humbled by all the kind strangers who have helped improve his life.
What do you think of this inspiring story? Would you have done the same, were you in Alexander's place? Let us know in the comments and pass this article along to brighten your friends' days!