“Nobody would give us a chance. We were in our early twenties. We had two young kids. We were working, but living check to check. At the time we were staying in the projects with my mother-in-law, but my kids were growing up, so we needed our own place. But all the rental brokers wanted to see our bank statements. And we had no savings. We didn’t even have accounts. Then one day I was walking down the avenue, and I saw a super fixing up an empty apartment. I told him I needed to speak to the landlord directly. No brokers. And I guess he liked my vibe, because he gave me the name: Ronald Petrowski. When I called Mr. Petrowski, I explained everything. I told him we needed a chance. He agreed to meet me and my husband at Lenny’s Pizzeria. He bought us a plain pie and listened to our story. He’d grown up poor himself, so he knew the struggle. And he gave us a chance. We’ve been in that apartment for 35 years now, and I’ve paid him every cent. We’ve fallen on hard times. At one point I owed him an entire year of rent. But he was so gracious. He never sent us an eviction notice. Every time he came to collect, he’d sit at our kitchen table, have a cup of coffee, and listen to our situation. Mr. Petrowski is my hero. He sold the building a couple years ago, but we still keep in touch. That man gave me a home to raise my children.”
