Melvin Johnson ~ Our Humble Hero

He awoke at 4 a.m. to the sound of a fire alarm.

“First I got up and made sure it wasn’t my place,” NPI employee and tenant Melvin Johnson says of the fire in February 2005. “I went out and saw all the smoke in the hallways. The smoke was coming from the top, so I thought it was an upstairs apartment.”

After calling 9-1-1 he ran upstairs to waken the neighbors and managed to clear out three of the four units. Unfortunately, the remaining first floor apartment was the source of the electrical fire. The resident there sustained third degree burns and her cat was killed. The woman has received treatment at St. Vincent Mercy Medical Center and has undergone physical therapy.

“I wish I could have gotten her out of there,” Mr. Johnson said.

But his quick response prevented injury to others, as well as further damage that could have put people out of their homes. In May 2005 NPI honored him with a Heroic Housing Supporter Award.

Mr. Johnson has had his share of hardships—growing up in a violent section of New Orleans, struggling with bipolar disorder and sleeping in the streets of Toledo for a year before finding shelter and linkage to services at St. Paul’s Community Center. He served in the U.S. Army and drove a truck for 17 years before depression and road rage sidelined his career.

“I’ve seen so much stuff… it (the fire) didn’t phase me that much. I just felt bad for her.”

Today he is a full-time custodian for Neighborhood Property Services, a division of NPI that cares for its 80-plus properties. Work has been key to his recovery.

“It’s about keeping busy—not sitting around having all that time to think all those negative thoughts and being in a negative space,” he said.

For NPI, Mr. Johnson has been a real blessing.