Homeless man given new start found dead by colleagues

A homeless man who was given a new start by Iceland’s manager in Bilston, has been found dead by a colleague. The man, Les Price, was given a job a little over 10 years ago when the manager Paul Atley, noticed him struggling on the streets.
Colleague Natalie Birch went to check on Les after she became concerned that he had not come to work over Christmas.
“I gave him my number so he could get in touch if he needed me,” she said. “I tried ringing him one day and couldn’t get through. He didn’t show up for a few days but we thought he could have got confused with the days as it was around Christmas time.”
Natalie added: “Me and a colleague went round to his flat and could hear his phone ringing from inside.
“We called the police to do a welfare check, we didn’t want to try to enter his property as that’s his space.
“They came and I just heard them say that there was a deceased male. It was heart-breaking to know he passed away alone.”
Natalie said colleagues were devastated by the sudden death of Les, who was in his 60s. He did not have any known relatives and so treated those he worked with as family, she said.
The 25-year-old added: “I first met Les about 15 months ago when I started working at Bilston Iceland. He was such a lovely character.
“He enjoyed cracking on with his work and having a little chat. But hearing how difficult his life had been was heart-breaking.
“Around ten years ago, he became homeless after his mother died. He was being beaten up in Bilston High Street on a daily basis.
“The manager of Iceland at the time took him in to the canteen in the shop and let him have some respite. He wanted to help more and got him the help he needed to get a flat.
“Les would say he was scared to retire because work meant so much to him.”
Staff knew something was wrong when Les did not turn up for his shifts around Christmas.
“We had a secret Santa present for him but never had the chance to get to him,” Natalie said.
“The last time he was seen was around December 22 but we didn’t realise something was wrong until after Christmas.
“It was emotional. We were told nothing looked suspicious and it seemed he had passed away in his sleep quite peacefully.
“The police asked if anyone wanted to go in to see him, which I did. He looked so peaceful but it was heart-breaking.
“He deserved to be known for who he was. He had no family to identify him so I did it.
“Seeing his living condition hit me – he had a bed and poster to his name. It was so sad.”
A GoFundMe page has been set up to raise money for a funeral for Les, once the coroner has determined the cause of death. It has so far raised more than double the £200 goal.
Colleagues that do not come to work should always be checked on, especially where there are no known next of kin as the lonely death of the homeless man given a new start illustrates so well.

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