Zoltan builds new future after life knocks him down
HUNGARIAN CONSTRUCTION WORKER GOES FROM SLEEPING ROUGH AT STATION TO WORKING AS MENTOR PASSING ON HIS SKILLS TO YOUNGSTERS
JUST four months ago, Zoltan Fehrer was sleeping rough in Manchester Victoria station.
Having lost his job in construction, he found himself unemployed, homeless and desperate.
But the 39-year-old says he has now been given a ‘second chance’ after finding work as a mentor to young people in the building trade.
His story brings home how we are all just a few pay cheques or life crisis away from homelessness – and why a helping hand can be vital.
For 11 years, Hungarian Zoltan worked in the US as a successful construction expert, renovating houses and offices. Having saved up nearly £40,000, he decided he was ready to move back home. But shortly after arriving in Hungary, he was beaten up and robbed, leaving him with no money and nowhere to live.
He said: “I had more money than ever and the chance at a great life, then the next day it was all gone.
“I had lost touch with my family and I was on my own in Hungary. I had nothing. It shows how quickly things can change for a person.”
He moved to the UK in November 2015 in a bid to find work and start afresh – living first in London, then moving last August to Manchester.
Zoltan was advised he didn’t qualify for support as he had not worked for three months in the UK.
He said: “I couldn’t get work as I didn’t have a place to live, but I couldn’t get a place to live as I hadn’t worked. I spent some nights in hostels, then others on the street. I always tried to sleep near to churches and charities so that I could get the chance of some food and a place to wash in the morning before I went out hunting for a job. I spent a lot of nights in Victoria Station.”
After linking up with a homeless charity, Zoltan was referred to the Work Company, which helps people find employment.
Staff there found Zoltan a place at housing association City West’s Skills for Employment Programme, which specialises in working with charities to provide training and qualifications for people in challenging circumstances. Zoltan enrolled on an eight-week course to become qualified to work on construction sites in the UK.
Lee Barker, who runs the programme for City West, said: “As soon as we saw Zoltan at work we knew he was exceptionally talented.
“I wanted to find out more about his back story and learned that he had spent years working in the industry.”
It was only after three weeks they realised Zoltan was homeless.
Inspired by his positivity and generous spirit in the face of adversity, his new colleagues have rallied round to help him. He now has a full-time job on the trust’s education programme teaching young people construction skills – and he’s found a home in Eccles in Salford.
Zoltan added: “I have my life back. I found a job, a bed, and a second chance at life. But I couldn’t have done it on my own.”