[hider=Ben Hayes]
Name: Benjamin Robert "Benji" Hayes

Age: 16 (B. 1918)

Appearance: It is clearly evident to anyone who lays eyes upon Benji that he has been a man, or rather boy, of the tracks for some time. His clothes are weathered, his face unshaven and his brown hair grows unkempt down to his shoulders. Though it cannot be denied that he carries a sense of weariness thanks to his newfound position of fending for himself, his gray eyes and sheepish grin still lend a somewhat boyish quality about him. Benji's most noticeable piece of clothing is an armed forces jacket inherited from his father that hangs loose on his 5'3" frame. The only other apparel Benji seems to own (other than his farmhand's uniform) are a plain white shirt, a faded pair of blue jeans, and a set of work boots.  

Personality: As one might expect given the past year or so of his life, Benjamin Hayes is a reserved and generally quiet boy of sixteen years. He's done what he's been told and proven to be well mannered and a hard worker. He didn't have the luxury of a long mourning period upon his mother's passing, and as such he learned very quickly the turmoil of being an orphan on the road. 

Oddly, this has not seemed to affect Benji's demeanor. Even as a child Benji had been a gentle soul, and his mother ensured he knew the value of kindness, even to those less advantaged to themselves. Some would say Benji is kind to a fault, letting himself go hungry so a younger child could eat, and so on. He believes that, eventually, the Lord will reward him for his kindness during such trying times as these. He has to. Such belief is one of the few things keeping Benji going on his journey through transience, and so far, his faith has typically been rewarded.

Hopefully the universe won't see fit to destroy such innocence.

History: Born in the town of Rockport to an English teacher, Benji never had the opportunity to know his father, conceived on the eve of one Charlie Hayes' deployment to France in the Great War. Aside from this, Benji's youth was practically mundane. He took regular trips to Flemington to visit his grandparents, caused only a little bit more trouble at school than your usual student, and went to confession once a month at his local place of worship. Like everyone else however, this changed once the Great Depression began in earnest. 

Upon the stock market crash in 1929, Benjamin's mother, Mary, was forced to take up any odd job she could find around town in order to support herself and her son, and while Benji was still young and naive enough to enjoy the almost daily trips to the local soup kitchen, Mary worked herself to the point of exhaustion, and only a few years into the Depression came down with what prove to be a lethal case of tuberculosis. While she had attempted to find an orphanage to take Benjamin in during her final days, it seemed all such establishments were full, and upon her death in the summer of 1933, Benji was left to fend for himself.

Without his mother's guidance, Benji has drifted from town to town along the railway in Georgia, relying on whatever kindness he could find from strangers and working whatever jobs he could find available. Recently, he heard of a farmstead taking on hands in Cypress Hollow, and traveled their with a group of his fellow homeless. He found himself one of the lucky few to be taken on by the Tackett Family, and believes he has now found the ideal spot to ride out the rest of the Depression and, potentially, a career.

Speech Color: [color=#228B22]Forest Green[/color]

Traits: 
Agile - You are quick and light on your feet. +1
Local - You are knowledgeable of Florida's landscape, including towns and local shortcuts. +1
Observant - You are better at noticing traps, as well as your enemies' weaknesses. +1
Quick-Thinking - You can make use of improvised weapons, such as bottles, broomsticks, and fire. +3

Weak - You are not physically strong. -1
Churchgoing - You are of the righteous sort who might hesitate to kill. -2
Skittish - You frighten easily, and have trouble keeping your cool in stressful situations. -2

Total: +1

Inventory: 
A single dog tag reading "Charles Hayes"
A simple Swiss army knife
[/hider]