Lawrence DePrimo – The Need for Compassion – Barefoot and Blessed

This photo is of New York City officer Lawrence DePrimo kneeling down to give a barefoot homeless man in Times Square a pair of new boots he purchased for him on a cold November night. This true life scene touched my heart as well as others all around the world.

On Nov. 14, officer DePrimo, saw the older homeless man shivering and without shoes sitting on 42nd Street. The officer left and returned with a pair of new boots he bought at a nearby store.

“It was freezing out, and you could see the blisters on the man’s feet,” said DePrimo, a three-year veteran of the department who lives with his parents on Long Island. Diprimo told the New York Times. “I had two pairs of socks, and I was still cold.”

The homeless man said he’d never had a pair of shoes. DePrimo purchased a pair of insulated boots and thermal socks and put them on the man’s feet.

DePrimo said the man “smiled from ear to ear. It was like you gave him a million dollars.”

The picture in this piece was taken by Jennifer Foster, a tourist from Florence, Ariz., who was visiting the city. She captured the act of kindness as she was passing by on the street.

“The officer told the homeless man, ‘I have these size 12 boots for you, and they are all-weather. Let’s put them on and take care of you,'” Foster said. The officer said to the man God bless you, the homeless man replied – God bless you too.

“The officer squatted down on the ground and proceeded to put socks and the new boots on this man.

“I was never so impressed in my life, she said. It is important, I think, for all of us to remember the real reason we are in this line of work. The reminder this officer gave to our profession in his presentation of human kindness has not been lost.”

Foster said that DePrimo had no idea he was being photographed: “The officer expected NOTHING in return and did not know I was watching.

Jesus said in Matthew 25 that we are to be like Officer DiPrimo, and I will be the first to admit that I do not always take action when I see the homeless in need. I am reminded that human kindness needs to take place one-act a time, personally by each one of us. God bless Officer Lawrence DiPrimo for reminding me that the love and compassion of Christ shows no boundaries, and is always in need. The video is touching below.

Each one of us needs to use our personal resources to help those we see in need. We individually need to help make it possible for all of God’s children to have the basic necessities of life, as we can. We build skyscrapers that touch the sky. We build massive bridges across lakes and waterways. We send space craft to remote parts of our galaxy. We have air travel that takes us from continent to continent in a matter of hours. But as great as all that seems, and it is, Jesus reminds us what the greatest thing that we need to achieve in life is, when He says – I was hungry and you gave me no food. I was naked and you gave me no clothing. I was broken, poor lost and you did not help me. If you do it unto the least of these my brethren, you do it unto me.

We are to reach out to those whose lives have been broken; lives that are tired – those at the bottom in the eyes of society. In compassion we are to reach out to those whose lives and hearts have been trampled down under the feet of oppression, poverty and sickness.

Matthew 25:34-45

Jesus will say to those on his right, ‘Enter, into God’s kingdom. It’s been ready for you since the world’s foundation. And here’s why –

I was hungry and you fed me,

I was thirsty and you gave me a drink,

I was homeless and you gave me a room,

I was shivering and you gave me clothes,

I was sick and you stopped to visit,

I was in prison and you came to me.’

Then he will turn to the ‘goats,’ the ones on his left, and say! Depart from me. You’re good for nothing but the fires of hell.

Why? Because—

I was hungry and you gave me no food,

I was thirsty and you gave me no drink,

I was homeless and you gave me no bed,

I was shivering and you gave me no clothes,

Sick and in prison, and you never visited.’

 “Then those ‘goats’ are going to say, ‘Master, what are you talking about? When did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or homeless or shivering or sick or in prison and didn’t help?’

 “He will answer them, ‘I’m telling the solemn truth: Whenever you failed to do one of these things to someone who was being overlooked or ignored, that was me—you failed to do it to me.

Related articles

• NYPD officer gives homeless man shoes (upi.com)
• NYPD Officer Larry DePrimo on Act of Kindness Toward Homeless Man: “I Just Knew I Had to Help Him” (foxnewsinsider.com)
• Officer gives boots to homeless man; sparks online sensation (thestar.com)
• Larry DePrimo, NYPD Officer, Buys Homeless Man Pair of Boots and Proves He’s “New York’s Finest” (foxnewsinsider.com)
• An officer AND a gentleman (smh.com.au)
• Cop who bought shoes for homeless man ‘really didn’t think about the money’ (todaynews.today.com)
• Larry and the size 12s (theage.com.au)
• Photo of NYPD cop giving boots to homeless man a big hit on Facebook (theprovince.com)

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Categories: Comfort, Compassion, Friends, Giving, God, Humility, Jesus, Love, Ministry, Service, Thankful

Tags: barefoot, compassion, DePrimo, Friends, Giving, God, Homelessness, Humility, Jesus, Lawrence DePrimo, least of these, love, Matthew 25, Ministry, Service