The following piece, in part, appeared in The Los Angeles Times.

Most Americans make a living without taking a huge toll on our bodies, but millions of blue-collar workers depend on their bodies to earn an income. Eventually, these workers will confront a harsh reality: As you age, your body will limit the amount of work you can do. In May, I spoke with two unhoused older men who live in Venice. Their bodies served them well — until they didn’t. Both were gifted athletes and aspired to play professional baseball, and both later found work in construction, which paid well — until it didn’t. In Los Angeles County, where rents average more than $2,000 a month, anyone in a blue-collar job is uniquely vulnerable to homelessness. If we want to keep people off the street, we need a stable support system for those who can no longer do the grueling work that once supported them. Kenny and Daniel agreed to share their stories with The Times on the condition that their last names not be used.

Kenny

My name is Kenny, and I’m 59. I was born and raised in Santa Monica. I went to Grant Elementary, John Adams Middle School and Santa Monica High. I’m a slow learner, and by high school my grades were dropping — A’s turned to Cs. Teachers don’t have time for people who don’t understand quickly. Also, I liked sports — anything with a ball — and I was on every team they had. That made it harder to study. Practice — that’s two hours of your day, easy.

I was a good baseball pitcher. In Little League, a famous pitcher and coach, Burt Hooton, saw me play and told my dad that I had an ‘exciting arm’ with my curveball but that he could teach me a knuckleball, which wouldn’t hurt my arm as much. You can’t hit those. You don’t know where it’s going. It’s like a face coming at you. He taught me, and I got good. Even today, people call me ‘Knuckles.’ We came in second place that year.'”

For the rest of the story, visit The Los Angeles Times here.