Faith in Action: How a Roadside Meeting Changed Two Lives

Editor’s note – This piece comes from Chaplain Andrew Ross, who tells the story of a homeless, disabled man named Sy, met on an ordinary commute and never let go of. It is a simple, unhurried account of what happens when someone stops long enough to actually see another person, and keeps showing up long after the first act of kindness has passed. BCW is running it because it puts flesh on a command Christians say we believe but too often walk past: love your neighbor as yourself.

A Man Beside the Road

Nearly every morning, at the I-95 entrance ramp in Westport, Connecticut, I saw a man with two prosthetic legs sitting in a broken-down wheelchair holding up a sign asking for help. Many drivers passed by. Occasionally, I stopped, gave him a few dollars, and offered a prayer before continuing my way.

One afternoon on my return trip from work, while stopped at a traffic light, I saw the same man in my rearview mirror. He was struggling to get across some bumpy ground with his wheelchair.

I recognized him immediately as the same man from the I-95 ramp. Though my only connection to him was my brief morning stops, I simply could not ignore his struggle.

I turned around, stopped, and offered to help him get onto smoother pavement.

When I asked where he was going, he told me his apartment was nearby. So, I pushed him home, thinking perhaps this was simply another small act of kindness that God had placed before me that day, and that I would be on my way shortly, but God had something quite different in mind.

His ground-floor apartment was on a busy street, noisy from passing cars; it smelled of stale cigarette smoke, had dirty floors, and an unmade bed in that tiny studio home.

The feeling I had at that moment was that neglect and loneliness lived here.

His name was Sy. He was a frail, sixty-two-year-old living alone. We began to talk, and as we did, it became clear to me that he was not only severely handicapped but also frightened, isolated, and desperate for connection. I realized this man needed more than my occasional small monetary gestures or a quick roadside prayer; he needed someone to truly care. I knew I had to give more.

Editor’s note – It would have been easy to keep this at the level of spare change and a quick prayer. Most of us do. What changes the story here is a single decision to turn the car around, and then a second, harder decision to keep showing up long after the first visit.

When Compassion Becomes Commitment

Upon arriving home that evening, I relayed the story to my wife, Shelly, and that night, we both decided to help Sy as much as we could.

Over the next year, we brought groceries, cooked meals, assisted with appointments, and, through various agencies, supported his welfare by working with his social workers, aides, and doctors.

Sy was quickly becoming a part of our extended family, too. Before long, as if knowing Sy for a lifetime, members of my family were asking, “How’s Sy doing!?” and looking for ways to help with him.

My sister Patty would drop off supplies when I couldn’t; Shelly packed meals; even my 90-year-old aunt Antonette stopped by with one of her homemade specialties; and all of us contributed our time cleaning his apartment.

Watching this unfold brought me joy—not just for Sy, but for the compassion and concern shown by my family and others. I believe that Sy was beginning to feel like he mattered to someone. He was no longer invisible. He was loved.

As I saw compassion and help from others grow out of this single act of kindness, I understood the real message: an act of kindness can create a ripple effect, inspiring others and changing lives. It provides not just physical support but also restores dignity and offers healing to those who feel alone and forgotten.

Through these actions, people can feel noticed, valued, and loved by God and their fellow man.

Sy was not to be pitied or felt sorry for. He wanted his independence as much as any of us. Incredibly, for a man with two prosthetic legs, he owned and rode a motor scooter to pick up groceries, go to the pharmacy, and run other errands. That amazed me! Sy was determined to enjoy what was left of his independence.

Balancing our work and family schedules to help him wasn’t always easy or convenient, but we pressed on. One night, we got a call from Sy telling us he had been in a scooter accident a few days earlier and had gone to the emergency room for some minor injuries. He asked us to stop by and help him change his bandages.

When we arrived at his apartment, we were shocked to see the damage he sustained and questioned our ability to re-bandage his wounds. We tried to persuade him to let us bring him back to the ER for more professional attention to his condition. Sy could be stubborn at times and begged us to stay. So, after a quick trip to the pharmacy to pick up first-aid supplies, we cleaned his wounds, wrapped them carefully with bandages, and then sat with him while he rested from his injuries.

Sy’s resolve to live his life on his own terms, despite his handicap, was amazing and worthy of honor.

That evening, love, patience, compassion, and presence were what Sy needed the most.

The more time we spent together, the more I admired his courage and perseverance. We spoke often and prayed together. Eventually, Sy accepted Jesus Christ into his life and began reading his Bible frequently. Each visit afterward was filled with his excitement about what he had been learning about God.

There were moments after leaving his apartment when I would sit alone in my car and cry, overwhelmed with emotion. I was not crying simply because of Sy’s suffering. I was overwhelmed by the power of the Holy Spirit’s presence and by the mercy and grace of God at work in both our lives.

Scripture reminds us in John 3:18 that we need to put our words of love and compassion into action. In that moment, Sy felt truly cared for and had someone to rely on. That experience showed us what real faith in action looked like.

It is what God expects from all His children.

This moment remains especially sacred to me.

Sy had some distant family, but he mostly spoke about his sister, whom he felt closest to. Because of the decades of silence between them, he felt uncomfortable reaching out. I finally convinced him to try, and Sy made the call. Their conversation went beautifully. When I saw him the next day, he was buzzing with excitement about their plans to get together soon.

Sadly, that reunion never happened, but I truly believe that single call brought Sy a sense of peace and hope.

Editor’s note – Sy’s story does not end the way we want it to, and the piece doesn’t pretend otherwise. That honesty is part of its value: faithfulness to someone in need is not a transaction that guarantees a tidy outcome. It is simply what love does, for as long as it is given the chance to.

The Good Samaritan and the Grace of God

In Jesus’ parable of the Good Samaritan, a man lies wounded and helpless on the side of the road as others pass him by. Looking past the bitter animosity between their peoples, a Samaritan stops to help this stranger—a Jew whose beliefs and traditions directly conflict with his own. Instead of walking away, he gives his time, energy, and resources to someone society had abandoned. He simply sees a human being in need and responds with love.

Looking back on my time with Sy, I see how it changed my understanding of what it means to help others without conditions, prejudice, or reward. The experience taught me to take risks and step out of my comfort zone. I learned that helping someone is not just about giving money or a few minutes of my time, but also about offering friendship, being there, listening, and sharing stories.

“This got me thinking about what Paul says in Philippians 2:3 about serving each other in the spirit of God with humility and without pridefulness or boasting, and how in Matthew 25:40 records Jesus’ words, ‘Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.'”

When someone knows their life matters, and they are not forgotten, it can restore hope and dignity.

When God Places Someone in Your Path

I believe most people want to help others in need, and you don’t need to be a chaplain, pastor, priest, missionary, or theologian to provide it, just a willingness and heart to help, but that help does not have to be extraordinary or bold. Often, it is quiet, subtle, and seen only by God. God gives us chances to help those who are suffering every day and wants us to respond with a willing and joyful heart.

As Christians, we hold to the values of love, forgiveness, compassion, and to love our neighbors as ourselves. But when we do not live out these beliefs, we fall into hypocrisy. Scripture clearly warns us not to ignore the poor and promises that being generous leads to spiritual blessings.

Consider James 2:15-16:

If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, 'Go in peace, be warmed and filled,' without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that?

What good is it indeed?

And from Solomon, son of David of Israel, recites:

Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the Lord, and he will repay him for his deed. [Proverbs 19:17]

Our main responsibility to God is to show our faith by living it out. The Bible teaches that helping people in need is a direct way to express our faith and fulfill our duty to God.

Editor’s note – The warning here cuts close for anyone who has ever prayed for someone in need and stopped there. Scripture doesn’t let belief and action separate that easily, and this piece is a plain, unembellished picture of what it looks like when they don’t.

Who Is the Sy in Your Life?

Maybe God has already put someone in your path. An act of kindness does not always need a year of commitment. Sometimes, just a small moment of your time can make a lifetime of difference for someone else.

In time, Sy passed away quietly, but the impact he had on my life and faith remains with me to this day.

The good accomplished through this experience was the result of God’s grace at work through me. For that, I am forever grateful.

As far back as ancient times, in Leviticus 19:18 and reinforced in Matthew 22:39, God commands us to: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ So please remember that just one small act of kindness and compassion signals care for another person and can inspire them to do the same.

“Having faith in God’s Word is only part of what He requires of us. He also calls us to demonstrate that faith by loving and serving one another with compassion. Faith that remains unexpressed in action falls short of the life Christ has called us to live.”

That single act can start a ripple that grows into a wave of God’s wellspring of love, mercy, healing, and restoration.

All that remains is for you to stop.

As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also. [James 2:26]

May God bless you as you put your faith into action.

A Word from the Editor
Chaplain Ross’s account is really an extended answer to Jesus’ question, “Who is my neighbor?” Sy was not a project or a cause; he was a person, and he was treated like one, for a year, without any guarantee of a happy ending or a tidy resolution to his story. That is what faith without works looks like when it is finally put to work, quietly, one visit at a time.

Editor Comment: Turning around to help a stranger you'd only ever passed on a ramp, then staying present through a full year of unglamorous, ordinary care — that decision is the heart of this piece, and you let it speak for itself without over-explaining it. The way you frame Sy's motor scooter rides and his refusal to be pitied is especially well done; it keeps him a whole person rather than a project.