As the cost of living increases and rent becomes a luxury, people find creative ways to afford housing. For one woman, the solution was living inside a grocery store sign for a year.
On April 23, 2024, contractors of a Family Fare store located in Midland, Michigan, began investigating a mysterious extension cord that went through the ceiling behind the establishment sign. They found a 34-year-old woman who had set up an office in the small space over the store. The extension cord allowed the woman to turn on a computer, a coffee machine, and a printer over a tiny table, some of the few possessions she had with her. To make it more comfortable, the woman placed some flooring in the little room, measuring 5 feet wide and 8 feet high. But apart from that, the unnamed woman only had some clothes.
As reported by AP News, upon discovering the intruder, the police were called. After the officers arrived, the woman peacefully agreed to vacate the premises, revealing that she had been living there for roughly a year. The only way to enter the sign was through a door on the roof, and both the police and the store’s employees couldn’t tell how the woman kept accessing her hidden room – there was no sign of a ladder. No wonder locals have named the woman the “Rooftop Ninja.”
What was the fate of the Rooftop Ninja?
Since the Rooftop Ninja agreed to take her things and go, the Family Fare store decided not to press charges against the woman. In an official statement, Family Fare’s parent company, SpartanNash, declared that the store employees dealt with the intruder “with the utmost compassion and professionalism.” That’s a fit reaction, as the story is as tragic as it is surprising.
While the police didn’t reveal details about this Rooftop Ninja, officers confirmed the woman was employed. It’s heartbreaking to realize that having a job no longer guarantees someone will find housing they can afford, which leads to desperate measures such as living inside a grocery store sign. The responding officers also volunteered to give the Rooftop Ninja information about homeless shelters, but the woman just left. As the officer puts it, “She apologized and continued on her way. Where she went from there, I don’t know.”
The woman didn’t face legal repercussions for her unexpected housing choice, nor did she reveal how she climbed up and down the grocery store sign without being noticed. Police officers recommended she stay away from the Family Fare store, and she seems to have heard the advice.