About Us
Who are we?
Josh
Hello! My name is Josh Nagy. I am an 18-year-old from Boston Massachusetts. At the time of writing, I am about to graduate high school. I plan to spend the next 4 years at Connecticut College and while I’m not sure exactly what path I will pursue I am interested in exploring anthropology, psychology, philosophy, and much more!
I have always enjoyed riding my bike but after watching the Tour De France in 2020 I became cycling obsessed. I began riding constantly, learning about the beautiful sport, and started dreaming about riding across the country.
As I have continued to grow up and better understood my own value, abilities, and potential, I have gained a better appreciation for the value and potential within all of us. However, It has become painfully clear to me that many, around the world and in this country, are not able to share their beauty and potential with the world. Most particularly, the homeless community, who spends their everyday fighting with everything they have to gain the basics. For the homeless, there is no time for being the best version of themselves, self-actualization, or planning ahead for the years to come. I wanted to do something about this incredible loss of human potential I thought there would be no better way to do it than by exploring the beautiful country that is allowing me to maximize my own potential.
Carl
In our Riding for Home cross-country bicycle trip to benefit homeless/housing organizations, Josh and I are bringing together our passions for affordable housing, cycling and our family. I’m grateful to Josh for convincing this 61-year-old to join him to pursue this bucket-list dream, a dream I’ve had since riding from my hometown of Montclair, NJ to Chicago when I was about Josh’s age. I’m also grateful to my other son Julian and my wife and life partner Beth for all they’ve done and sacrificed to make this trip possible. I similarly appreciate the support of our extended family, friends and colleagues for their financial support to my previous bicycle fundraising ventures (specifically 25 years’ worth of AIDS bicycling fundraisers) and for whatever they can do to support the beneficiaries of our Riding for Home adventure.
I inherited from my parents a belief that all people have a right to stable housing, and I have been blessed that my career has allowed me to help create access to affordable housing for low- and moderate-income people in greater-Boston. Most recently I have done so as the Executive Director of Just A Start, a fabulous 54-year-old Cambridge, MA-based community development corporation that develops affordable housing, runs adult and youth training programs, and provides a wide range of housing services.
Why are we doing this
About a year ago I, Josh, was in the comments section of an Instagram post. There was a gentleman, who said he was homeless, making a point about homelessness. I asked him a question or two in the comment section before our conversation moved to direct message. After some discussion and research, I soon realized that this was indeed a real homeless man living in Toronto. His name is Chris Leach (if you want to learn more about Chris and help out his cause in particular check out his website: www.homelessunlimited.com). After a year or so of talking with him over Instagram, I now consider him a friend. Me and Chris have discussed everything from what it really means for one to be homeless, to the makeup of Bill Maher's audience. I already knew homelessness and housing insecurity to be a devastating and crucially important issue thanks to the work my dad does but Chris has taught me on a much more concrete and real level how crippling homelessness is. The ideas and stereotypes we all have about homeless people as well as the incredible opportunity cost in terms of time that being homeless takes up make it almost impossible for one to get a job, have their basic needs reliably met, as well as make real human connections. Impossible at least, without outside support.
That is where organizations like Pine Street Inn and the National Alliance to End Homelessness come in! Carl has seen throughout his career how people’s lives unravel when they lack stable housing, and how life-changing an affordable home can be for these individuals and families. It is a prerequisite to almost all other aspirations: safety, health, the wellbeing and education of children, economic advancement, and civic engagement. It is morally inexcusable that in one of the richest countries on earth, homelessness causes millions of U.S. residents to suffer unnecessarily. This inequity also hurts all of us by preventing millions from fully participating in and contributing to society. The pandemic has compounded the problem and highlighted how critical a stable home is for all of us. This makes it all the more important to help right now!