The Spiritual Perspective 206: He Went From Being a One-Man Food Bank to Starting a Movement: The Story of Joseph Bradford III and The B.A.R.E. Truth (Replay)
In this week’s episode of The Light Watkins Show, we revisit Light’s conversation with Joseph Bradford III about how the challenges of his childhood led him to dedicate his life to helping the homeless.
Joseph started a non-profit called B.A.R.E. Truth, an organization that provides mentorship, independent living assistance, and wellness services to impoverished individuals and families. By helping them attain healthy, purpose-driven lives, Joseph ultimately changed the economic and living conditions of communities.
Their conversation begins as always, with Joseph’s upbringing, and he tells a story about being born to a very young mother, the oldest of his siblings. He talks about the responsibilities placed on his shoulders to look after those more vulnerable than himself, even as a kid. This sparked an early tendency in Joseph to be caring and to see that the people around him were safe before he thought of his own well-being.
We hear about Joseph's many challenges through school and college before he finally wound up in California and began to help the homeless after giving away half his dinner one night. Joseph talks about consistently trying to lend a hand and how this process slowly scaled up to the point where he started B.A.R.E Truth.
Light and Joseph spent the last part of their conversation focusing on good approaches to helping the homeless, the work Joseph does to keep his non-profit running, and the centrality of his desire to care keeps him motivated each day.