VIDEO. From homeless to bicycle repairman: Thierry’s long journey

When he works, Thierry’s hands are always black with grease. We are on the ground floor of the Maison des Thermopyles, a Parisian boarding house dedicated to the formerly homeless. Since 2013, Thierry has made this place his “home” and it is here that he indulges in his lifelong passion: getting his hands dirty by repairing old bikes.

On the day of our shoot, Marie-Noelle, a pensioner and neighbor from the 14th arrondissement, brings Thierry an old bicycle from his childhood. Thierry will try to fix this.

“Eleven Years of Hardship”

Thierry’s life was not always so simple. At age 15, he lost both of his adoptive parents in a car accident. A year later, his brother Jean-Paul died on a motorcycle. “Then I had several host families,” he says.

As an adult, Thierry changed several professions: security guard, gravedigger, then worker. He moved to Paris and in 1992 met the woman of his life, Mina.

After an accident at work and then being fired due to a quarrel with their boss, Thierry and Mina find themselves on the streets. “Eleven years of hardship,” he sums up modestly. As things progress, his passion for cycling leaves him a little. “But gradually it came back to me.”

First street renovation

One day, a woman brings Thierry an old bicycle, which keeps going off the rails. She noticed this homeless man’s passion for cycling. Thierry manages to fix it, so she gives him two cartons of cigarettes as a sign of gratitude. “And all this in 10 minutes of work. I told her she could come back whenever she wanted,” he recalls with a laugh.

In 2013, Mina and Thierry finally found a home in a boarding house at Thermopylae. “When I got up there, I told my wife: Finally we can leave our bags “, Thierry recalls. A sweeter life begins and his passion for cycling does not go unnoticed.

“We are very supportive of Thierry in his bike workshop. This is a way for him and the association to open up to their neighbors,” says Charles Mussott, an educator working at the Maison des Thermopyles.

VIDEO. From homeless to bicycle repairman: Thierry’s long journey

While big bike shops are experiencing an unprecedented peak in repairs since the start of lockdown, Thierry’s workshop remains very modest. When he has three or four machines a month, he is quite satisfied: “Every now and then I get paid in coffee or a few tickets.”

And when the piggy bank is a little full, Thierry uses the money to buy spare parts for the bicycle.

“He amazes me, he’s lightning fast,” comments Marie-Noëlle as Thierry puts the handlebars back on his minibike. After an hour and a half of work, she leaves Thermopylae, pedaling. She hasn’t ridden a bike since the 1995 strikes, but will now be able to explore Paris in peace.