The River Runs Deep
Rob Tucker and his sons Robert Junior (right), Cahlil (center) and Cortez (outside of the frame) watch basketball on a weekend night in June, 2016.
Robert Tucker, 40, is a single dad who is raising his three sons in a house across the street from the Oaks of Rightness shelter in Monroe, MI. Pastor Heather Boone helps to pay for the rent. Rob came to the shelter a year earlier after moving to Monroe from Lansing.
Rob was born as a two pound baby. "It was a miracle I survived" he said. He grew up in poverty in Lansing, MI. and didn't know ho his father was. Because of his golden tongue, he was always told he would be a minister. A white family of his friend took him in and helped raise him. Luck and talent helped him get into a private high school. But at 17 his childhood caught up with him. Rob started getting into trouble selling drugs. Eventually he dropped out of school and was kicked out of his friend's house. He continued to sell drugs, making and losing a small fortune in the process. Eventually, he as arrested and convicted.
Rob now raises his three sons Cortez, 10, Cahlil, 9, and Robert Junior, 7, on his own. Their mother who lives in East Lansing, sees them rarely.
Monroe is a small town half way between Detroit, MI and Toledo, OH. Its biggest claim to fame is being the headquarters of Lazy Boy Corporation. Lazy Boy no longer manufactures furniture here. It imports it from China. Two paper mills and a number of car factories (including Ford) used to operate in the area. They are all gone now. Jobs that are still available in the area are low paying and mostly in the service industry.
Photo by Marcin Szczepanski, All Rights Reserved
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