Today, members of the Harvard Business School Armed Forces Alumni Association will wrap up their week-long fundraiser, which stationed participants in a tent outside the business school to collect money for the New England Shelter for Homeless Veterans.
Volunteer Barry Gittleman, a first-year MBA student, said he is excited to participate in the annual event.
“Essentially, we are here to raise awareness and money for the over 500,000 homeless veterans in the United States,” he said.
Two students take shifts manning the tent 24 hours a day, said Gittleman, who shared the tent yesterday with Ben Ryan, also a first-year MBA student.
Although the threat of cold weather might deter students from remaining outside, Gittleman said there are 40-50 AFAA members participating in the fundraiser.
The Harvard Business School AFAA raised $9,000 last year for the NESHV and is trying to increase that number to $10,000 this year, according to a statement.
Gittleman said, however, the unseasonably warm weather for the past few days has detracted from the power of the AFAA’s sacrifice.
“The services provided by the New England Shelter for Homeless Citizens are needed regardless of the weather, but people seem to give and react more to the situation when the weather is bad,” he said.
Veterans constitute one-third of the homeless population, and the number of homeless Vietnam-era veterans is greater than the number of service persons who died in that war, according to an NESHV statement.
The NESHV depends on donations of money, clothing, food and volunteer time to accommodate the many resources needed to aid the homeless veterans, according to an NESHV promotional pamphlet. The pamphlet also said the NESHV provides an emergency shelter program in addition to its traditional housing program to keep the homeless off the streets. In addition, the NESHV also has on-site assistance for helping veterans deal with post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse and emotional and family problems.
The group’s main goal is to help veterans become self-sufficient members of society again, according to the pamphlet. In working toward this goal, the institution houses a job-training program and works with various companies to place veterans into various jobs
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