Homeless man and beer were a bad combo, candidate says

Port Moody mayoral candidate Rob Vagramov admits chugging a beer with a homeless man as a random act of kindness probably wasn’t the best idea.

But in an interview he posted to his Facebook page this week, Vagramov says he thinks his heart was in the right place.

In the 2014 video, posted on YouTube, Vagramov films himself taking a random act of kindness challenge, and says he thought the challenge might involve drinking.

“I was pretty excited to get f---ed up to be honest with you until I realized it was a random act of kindness nomination,” he says in the video. “So let’s see if we can’t do both and make somebody’s day.”

He swears a lot, buys a homeless man a sandwich, and then the two shotgun a beer while laughing and appearing to be having a good time.

“This is five years ago, fresh out of college,” says Vagramov, in the Facebook interview, adding that while his heart was in the right place, it’s “obviously super-cringy” to watch now.

“Having the knowledge that I’ve gained over this term, sure I’d buy a guy a lunch. Beer, probably not the best idea, considering substanceabuse issues,” he says.

Vagramov, who was first elected to Port Moody council in 2014, then adds that he still swears like a sailor with his friends.

He notes in the interview that he is on a city task force to tackle homelessness in the Tri-Cities.