California based entrepreneur and sociologist Kevin Adler founded Miracle Messages in December 2014, to reunite homelessness people with their loved ones — using nothing but social media and his smartphone. As a tribute to his Uncle Mark, who lived on and off the streets for 30 years before his death, Kevin is on a mission to help 100 homeless Americans reconnect with family and friends that haven’t seen each other in decades — in just 18 months, he’s managed to reunite 14 families.
In an interview with The Plural of You, the podcast about people helping people, Kevin revealed how he got the idea to start Miracle Messages — short video messages from homeless individuals to their long-lost loved ones delivered on social media and smartphones.
“[A visit to Mark’s grave site] got me thinking about how the tools that we use for storytelling may not extend to people who are on the periphery of society, such as my beloved uncle. I started thinking: How can we re-purpose tools like wearable cameras, social media, and smartphones to help humanize and potentially make an impact in the lives of our homeless neighbors in need?”
Kevin first recorded a short Miracle Message for Jeffrey, who had not seen his family in over 20 years. Within hours of uploading Jeffrey’s video on Facebook, his sister was tagged in the post. In the next couple of days, $5,000 was raised to bring Jeffrey — a missing person for 12 years — home. He was eventually reunited with his sister in less than three weeks.
Next, Kevin recorded a short Miracle Message for Johnny — a missing person for over 21 years who had not seen his family since the early 1980s. Three weeks after his video was posted on Facebook, all four of his brothers and sisters flew from across the country with their partners and kids to reunite in-person.
“Someone who is just homeless Joe or Jane to you or I could be the most important person in the world to that one person that is looking for them.”
Kevin told The Huffington Post that a Miracle Message video features homeless individuals identifying themselves along with the family or friend they want to reunite with. He then shares the clip on YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. If family members are traced, they’re asked to respond with a Miracle Message of their own. A phone call is arranged before the final reunion.
While the project is emotionally demanding, the reunions make it all worth it. Kevin told CBS Boston:
“That is enormous gratification, to have a homeless individual and their family sitting there together — who otherwise hadn’t been in touch for 30 years — say thank you for giving us our family back”.
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