Beggar man ‘lives from kindness’
Complete strangers have opened their hearts and wallets to Kerikeri man Leo Stirling by giving him a return flight to Kenya, wads of cash, and countless offers of a bed for the night.
Stirling has been begging on Kerikeri’s main street for the last couple of months, holding a collection of signs asking for everything from flights, a Rolex watch or simply his next meal.
Stirling, 39, has also travelled throughout New Zealand via the generosity of people he has encountered.
He says he has been living this way since January 2015, when he became fed up with working in a corporate job and wanted to travel and document the story along the way.
‘‘I’ve lived through goodwill and kindness for two years.’’
So far Stirling has notebooks filled with pictures of people who have given him a bed for the night, and their thoughts on what kindness means.
The books include his travels in France, Switzerland, Belgium, England, Kenya and New Zealand.
‘‘I’ve been searching for unconditional kindness in our world, the whole thing is about kindness. I ask but I don’t expect.’’
A couple of months ago he returned from a trip to Kenya, with the return flight paid for, where Stirling visited his nineyear-old daughter Naima.
‘‘I’m looking for ways to give people the opportunity to see kindness in action.
‘‘Often people express a heartfelt thank you to me.
‘‘It’s also to convey to people that it’s ok to ask for help at an unconditional level, as long as it’s done with honesty and total disclosure.
‘‘The photos and comments [in the books] show that those giving on an unconditional level are happy to do so.
‘‘I see it on a daily basis - it’s convinced me that what I do has the capacity to add value to people’s lives at a level that transcends materialism.’’
He says only around 50 per cent of people ask what he uses the money for, with the rest giving freely.
‘‘That’s a greater degree of trust to give at that level.’’
Stirling says he has heard about a number of social media threads discussing what he is up to.
‘‘I’d rather people just come up and ask me.’’
Stirling says he doesn’t know how long he will live this way, but would eventually like to find a way to publish the books he has compiled.
A Far North District Council spokesperson says there have been no complaints around begging in Kerikeri and there is no specific bylaw around the activity. Police say they have had no formal complaints.
Would you give a complete stranger large amounts of cash or airfares? Email jenny.ling@fairfaxmedia.co.nz