"He didn't hear any of that," Quinlan said of the man she encountered. "He got upset and began mumbling that he would have to rob a gas station so he could get food."Yeah... that's what I do when I get irritated... threaten to commit a violent felony.
Quinlan said she approached the man and told him there was no need to make such a statement and tried to explain to him that he and his wife would indeed get food but, she said, he did not seem to hear the explanation. Though the man was "irritated" he took a seat in the food bank's entranceway with other clients, she said.
Another client's attempts to lighten the tension with some jokes only further infuriated the man, she said, and he again began to berate staff members and called Quinlan a "bitch." Staff told the man he would have to wait outside as his wife would be served and he again launched into a tirade, Quinlan said.Apparently... this is a family affair... a multi-generational army of societal leeches. And note, if you will... HE STILL GOT HIS FREE FOOD.
"I can't even repeat all the filth he said," said the shaken food bank manager.
At that point, police were contacted and the man agreed to wait outside. However, before police arrived, the man's son entered the building to help his mother carry the basket of food out and he too threatened Quinlan and other staff members.One has to wonder why Quinlan is so surprised though... this sort of thing appears to be the order of the day. And don't call them "crazy-ass grifters"... these folks are "clients."
The family left before police arrived.
Tense moments are becoming more and more common at Gleaners due to an increase in demand, Quinlan said. Clients regularly become upset with one another, creating angry encounters with the possibility of violence, she said.So this family drives in from out of town to score free food. I sure hope Ms. Quinlan gave this poor man gas money to defray some of his expenses. Or, better yet... maybe they could courier him his free food every week.
"It gets like this when we're busy. We understand people can get frustrated, but it's like everything else around here, sometimes it just spirals out of control."
Stewart, who had been called to the front of the building during Wednesday's incident, said he has witnessed similar moments in the past.
"I wouldn't say they're uncommon," he said. "Some of them defuse a little quicker, but it happens here."
Yessirree... build it and they will come... and come... and come...
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