Jesse Crum was finishing up work for the day when a stranger walked through his office door.
"He was just covered in sweat," Crum, a real estate advisor at Premier Sotheby's International Realty in Bonita Springs, said. "It was a hot day."
The stranger asked for a pen and paper, which he used to write Jesse a simple note: "My name is Fred and I'm deaf." He later explained he had missed his bus and needed help getting home.
Without hesitating, Crum offered to give the man a ride.
"He seemed like someone who needed a helping hand and I was happy to help," Crum said.
Crum eventually learned Fred Cowens Jr. worked at the Hyatt Regency Coconut Point down the road from the real estate office. Cowens Jr. gets to his job three times a week from Naples by bus.
After their first ride together, Crum and Cowens Jr. learned they have several things in common including a love of sports and literature by Stephen King.
"I was kind of taken aback," Crum said. "Outside of my mom, not many of my peers are into reading 700-page books."
As their friendship grew, Crum even purchased several Stephen King novels for Cowens Jr. for Christmas.
"I feel incredibly lucky," Cowens Jr. said.
The two hope their friendship will motivate others to find ways to come together.
"I think at the end of the day, it doesn’t matter if you’re deaf or hearing, we’re all humans," Cowens Jr. said. "It’s the one thing we have in common. We might have different cultures. But we’re all human. I’m deaf. Jesse’s hearing. But we get along just fine."