77-Year-Old Substitute Teacher, Jose Villarruel, Living In His Car Got A Birthday Surprise From A Former Students

Jose Villarruel

Jose Villarruel, lovingly known as “Mr. V” by his students, turned 77 years old in 2021. His former student, Steven Nava, now 21, decided to arrange a celebration for Villarruel.

When the pandemic started and classes went to remote learning, the need for substitute teachers went away, he said. Villarruel applied to get his retirement funds so he could have some income.

“I decided the school situation has changed completely and I believed that a job of a substitute was over. In May, I submitted my resignation. I managed to do all of the paperwork, all of the arrangements to get my pension. I got my check, but that check didn’t last long because I had debts already,” he said.

He made the decision years ago to live in his car because he was sending most of his income to his wife, children, and extended family in Mexico, he said.

Nava had noticed an older man sitting in a car in a parking lot near his house nearly every day in early March and was shocked to realize it was his old math teacher.

Determined to make a difference, Nava gave Villarruel $300 on the spot and helped him find a hotel to stay for the night. After that, the young man created a GoFundMe fundraiser, which was flooded with donations almost immediately.

“In a 24-hour period we surpassed the goal of $5,000, and in three days we raised $26,000,” he added.

Fontana Mayor Acquanetta Warren, former students of “Mr. V” and other well-wishers gathered at the Fontana Community Senior Center to celebrate the birthday of Villarruel.

“My initial thought was, ‘Am I dreaming?’ I still can’t get over this experience,” Villarruel said of the surprise. And now, he plans to pay it forward.

“The greatest feeling that I have right now is like an obligation that I need to do a lot for the world and the greatest feeling is I can do it and I’m going to find a way to do it,” he said.

The San Bernardino County Sheriffs Department heard about Villarruel and assisted him in getting a motel voucher on March 10, said Mike Jones, deputy sheriff of Homeless Outreach and Proactive Enforcement (HOPE) with the county.

This will give Villarruel a place to stay for a month while longer-term housing is arranged, he said.

“Our team works collaboratively across the county with service providers and county agencies to help people like Mr. Villarruel on a daily basis,” Jones said in the statement. “It’s these efforts that help the most vulnerable population of our community move beyond homeless.”

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