Man Who Was Homeless for Three Decades is Reunited With His Family When a Cop Discovers His True Identity

By: Sam | Last updated: Oct 27, 2023

Mick Myers grew up in a difficult environment, spending a significant amount of his adult life sleeping on the streets.

With the help of a deputy sheriff, Myers’ life was turned around. The sheriff and a volunteer assisted each other in getting Myers out of harm’s way. In addition, he was able to reconnect with his mother who had been estranged from him for years. Read on to learn all about this incredible story.

Myers' Childhood Was Rocky

When Mick Myers was two years old, a family in San Leandro, CA adopted him.

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Source: fb.ru

In high school, Myers excelled in marching band and was a decent student. As he grew older, things started to go downhill for him. As a teenager, he had a difficult time relating to his siblings, which made him feel like an outsider in his family.

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Nobody to Support Him

Myers was left without a support system after his adoptive parents died. Gradually, several family members and friends drifted away from him.

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Source: Fresh Edits

Following his loss of job, Myers was unsure what to do with himself. He had no support system and felt miserable.

A New Job

Although Myers was constantly shifting around, he was able to secure a job as a truck driver, which provided him with a sense of stability.

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Source: NTB Trucking

It didn’t matter that he moved constantly, he still had a schedule that he adhered to and became close to his coworkers. Even though Myers had been homeless, he was an influential leader in the company.

He Was Left Destitute After an Accident

During his time as a truck driver, Myers loved what he did. However, he suffered a severe motor vehicle accident on the way back to his home. The crash caused Myers to break his back, which left him in the hospital for a few weeks.

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Source: YouTube

After being put in a wheelchair for a year, Myers was only able to walk with crutches after being rehabilitated. With his condition, he realized that he wouldn’t have the option to continue working as a truck driver.

Jacob Swalwell Was About to Change Mick's Life Forever

Deputy Sheriff Jacob Swalwell and Myers met each other in November of 2016, in Hayward, California. Myers used to panhandle and play the guitar at a local spot, and Swalwell had repeatedly asked him not to beg there.

Source: YouTube

Although he had only given him warnings, the 33-year-old officer had never had a conversation with Myers. The only thing he knew was that he was a homeless man who begged often on Foothill Boulevard.

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Myers Had No Identification

Swalwell was planning to issue a citation for continuing to panhandle on the corner, despite the warnings. The two men began talking, when Swalwell realized the homeless man had no identification to show.

Source: YouTube

The homeless man told the deputy about his family, disability, and life on the street during their conversation. In the absence of an ID, the man could not claim social security benefits. The inability to claim benefits made his situation of being homeless even more precarious. He had lived without documentation for most of his life.

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Still Hunting for Work

Even though Myers was injured, he knew he had to keep working to survive. However, he was unable to perform many jobs as a result of his back issues.

Source: YouTube

Despite his issues finding a job, Myers briefly worked in the manufacturing and food service industries, as well as the Department of Motor Vehicles of the District of Columbia.

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Offering a Supportive Hand

As Myers explained, even though he really wanted an ID, he didn’t have the proper documentation to get one. He could not receive any government assistance because of this.

Source: YouTube

Myers was deeply touched by Swalwell’s generosity. Swalwell told him, “you’ve got someone to help you now. I will help you get an ID, so you can get social security and get off the streets.” This generosity led to the beginning of their friendship.

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What's the Point of Helping?

The question is, why did Swalwell personally help Myers rather than anyone else in all of California’s homeless population? Swalwell claims that, in the end, Myers was being sincere and honest to him, an experience that many police officers don’t get to experience often on the streets.

Source: YouTube

Myers’ refusal to waste any of the money he made on alcohol or drugs also contributed to Swalwell’s belief that he was telling the truth. One of the nearby restaurants was the only thing he could afford, so Myers spent all his money on fast food.

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Swalwell Goes Directly To Work

Luckily, Swalwell knew who to contact to get Myers the right help. First, he stopped at the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to learn about Myers’ records and when they were lost. Even though Myers once worked for the DMV, it seems that his records had been deleted.

Source: Haven Toronto

In order to receive his government ID, Myers would need to obtain a birth certificate and prove that he was a California resident. Knowing the difficulties this process would entail, Swalwell asked, “How does a homeless person come up with two forms of residency?”

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Myers Finally Gets His ID

The Alameda County Sheriff’s Department and the pastor of Swalwell’s church assisted him at his next stop. They were able to provide Myers with proof of residency by signing the necessary documents. Swalwell also began the search for Myers’ birth certificate, following a trail of paper leading him back to the hospital where he had been born.

Source: YouTube

Eventually, the deputy turned in Myers’ birth certificate and paperwork to the DMV. After jumping through countless hoops and submitting lots of paperwork, Myers finally acquired a photo ID in December of 2017.

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His True Identity

Myers’ birth certificate revealed that Mick is not his given name, but rather a shortened version of his middle name. He was unaware that his real name at birth was Gordon Michael Oakley.

Source: YouTube

After helping Myers get off the street, Swalwell quickly became the center of attention. Having picked up on the story, the local media reached out to Swalwell to get more details about the case.

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The Search for Myers' Family

Private investigator Mark Askins was immediately captivated by Myers’ story when he heard it. During his time volunteering for Miracle Messages, he helped reunite long-lost relatives and friends with homeless people.

Source: YouTube

Swalwell offered to help Myers with finding his long lost family members. It would greatly increase Myers’ chances of actually finding a place to live if he could find a willing family member to help him get back on his feet.

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His Struggle to Connect With Loved Ones

A lot of homeless people are not able to get in touch with their families or friends. Some people seek help from volunteers like Askins for a variety of reasons, including shame, insufficient education, limited access to technology, and mental disabilities.

Source: YouTube

Even if his family wanted to locate Myers, it was impossible since he fell off the grid, just like countless other homeless people before. Aside from that, he wasn’t up to date with the latest technology and hadn’t used anything like the Internet or cell phones since the 1980s.

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Gathering Information

Mark Askins had no problem getting to work once Swalwell provided him with the necessary information. He started searching through the records at the Alameda County Courthouse with only his name, date, place of his birth, and the name of his mother.

Source: YouTube

It is now standard practice to meticulously record a newborn’s information in a computer database immediately after birth. Prior to the 1950s, this practice was not common. Numerous records from the first half of the 20th century have not yet been digitized and are therefore inaccessible to the public.

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The Story of Myers' Parents

At the courthouse, Askins stumbled upon a case file pertaining to a young woman named Marie Pauline Oakley, who had married a man named Wiley Albert Oakley.

Source: Berkeleyside

Following the annulment of their marriage, the couple placed their child, Mick, up for adoption. Myers’ biological father had long since passed away, but Askins found out about him in no time at all.

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Trying to Locate His Mother

After learning the identity of Myers’ biological mother, it was time to find out more about his mother’s story. A few weeks of research led Askins to discover that Marie Pauline Oakley lived in Eureka, California.

Source: YouTube

Askins made a bold move by attempting to call the number in hopes that it would go through. After answering the phone, he found a woman who appeared to be elderly. At the age of 85, Mrs. Oakley, also known by her middle name Pauline, was still alive!

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Understanding Why the Adoption Took Place

Askins did not take very long to mention Myers to Pauline. Having wondered for a long time what had happened to him, she was surprised to learn her son was still alive. Pauline explained that Myers, known then as Gordon, was born with a hole in his stomach, a life-threatening condition.

Source: YouTube

Despite working multiple jobs, she could no longer pay off the medical bills, despite her extra work. To ensure that his chances of thriving in this world were as good as possible, she made the difficult decision to give him up for adoption.

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Reconnecting With Her Son

Myers’ adoptive parents actually attended the same church as Pauline. Despite having second thoughts about her decision, Pauline remained firm for the sake of her child.

Source: YouTube

Pauline was eager to reconnect with her long-lost son as soon as Askins contacted her about Myers. Although their first phone call took place in March of 2018, Myers and Pauline continued to communicate.

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The First Visit in Decades

Several weeks after speaking on the phone with his mother for the first time, Myers, Askins, and Swalwell flew in a small plane to Eureka to meet her. He had no memory of his birth mother as he was adopted at the age of two.

Source: YouTube

Myers was greeted by Shannon, his niece, at the airport as they landed, another pleasant surprise. Shannon ended up driving Myers, Askins, and Swalwell to Pauline Oakley’s home.

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The Moment of Truth

Myers saw his birth mother for the very first time since he was two years old. The two people embraced each other long and deeply despite not seeing one another in over 60 years.

Source: YouTube

Neither mother nor son had ever imagined that they would ever meet again. Both wept in each other’s arms. Since Myers had lived on the streets for so long, he was particularly touched by this moment.

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Revisiting the Past

Pauline and Myers’ decades apart culminated in a seated reunion after their embrace. Pauline even pulled out a couple of old photo albums and showed Myers pictures of him as a baby, as well as pictures of his mother and siblings.

Source: YouTube

In his own life story, Myers spoke about all the things he was thankful for, as well as how much he loved his adoptive family. In addition to discussing his estranged adoptive relatives, he also spoke of the many struggles he had endured.

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His Mother Was Shocked by What She Heard

Over time, Pauline heard about all of the hardships her son had faced during the course of his life, and it was devastating for her. It was very difficult for her to accept that he wasn’t doing well after spending all those years hoping for the best.

Source: YouTube

She said, “I just get so sad when I think of the things I got to do with his siblings and with their children. All the experiences they’ve had, things they have done. The advantages they’ve enjoyed. And I got so sad when he told me how he had been mistreated. The emotional abuse of never being accepted.”

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What it Means to Have a Family Reunion

Since the death of his adoptive parents, Myers finally felt accepted and loved by his new-found birth family. In addition to his mother, he also had siblings, nieces, nephews, and many more relatives than he ever imagined he would have, including a sister. They welcomed him with open arms.

Source: YouTube

Myers eventually moved in with his mother and was quickly welcomed as a family member. With the help of his insurer and his new friend, deputy Jacob Swalwell, he was also able to apply for social security benefits.

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Overflowing With Gratitude

The first time Swalwell entered the house, Pauline requested that he turn around. Pauline said, “I wanted to see where your wings are because you’ve brought my son home to me, you are an angel.”

Source: YouTube

There is no doubt that this family was meant to reunite. Myers replied affirmatively, “I’ve always wondered all these years why things turned out the way they did. This wondering has disappeared now.” This sweet reunion was only made possible by the effort and help of Jacob Swalwell and Mark Askins.

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It Took a Village

Without the assistance of Alameda County Sheriff’s Department officers and Miracle Messages officers, this reunion would not have been possible. Over $2,000 was raised through a GoFundMe campaign to help Myers with food, a place to live, clothing, and other necessities.

Source: Good News Network

It truly took a village to get Myers back on his feet. This story serves as a reminder of just how far a bit of kindness can go.

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