TAMPA, Fla. — This holiday season, a Tampa man who was homeless on the streets is now in his very own home for the holidays.
Eric Cox has lived through numerous tragedies. Years ago, Eric Cox lost his first wife just days before his son's first birthday.
"She died of a stroke and a heart attack," Cox said.
Cox's world was turned upside down. He became a single dad with five kids. To get him through, he wrote a song called 'Hero.' He said he needed a hero and his hero became his faith.
Four years ago, Cox faced another crisis in his life with having to undergo open heart surgery.
"My right artery was going behind my heart. It was a birth defect. I was born like that," Cox said.
Cox couldn’t return to work due to the surgery and he was living with his daughter at the time. When she had a child of her own, Cox felt it was time to move out.
"I didn’t want to invade the space so that’s when I became homeless," he recalled.
Cox was living out of his car. Times were tough and Cox became close to losing hope.
"I was in the mind frame that death would be better," Cox said.
Through his faith, he was able to get his mental health back on track. He was introduced to Tampa Hope, an organization that houses and feeds homeless people free of charge.
"They gave me hope because I was ready to give up," he said.
For over a year, Cox lived in a tent at Tampa Hope as he worked to get his own place. The organization is made possible by Catholic Charities. They give 125 homeless adults a warm place to live.
This month, Cox is now in his own apartment. It's a place he can finally call home, and he thanks Tampa Hope for helping him get to where he is now.
The organization relies on donations to help people like Cox and to keep the service going. People can donate online and they can specifically make donations to people like Cox by naming him in their donation.
This year the organization saw an increase in the number of homeless people in the Tampa Bay area, with the need being over 2,000 people. The organization hopes to expand the number of homeless people they can house to 325 people.