Northeastern nursing students help Boston veterans feel seen and supported

BOSTON — There are over 230,000 veterans living in Massachusetts — and about a quarter of them rely on the Boston VA Healthcare System. But there is a small population that is homeless. A recent service project by nursing students at Northeastern University taught them the very foundation of their career — service to others.

The bottles of shampoo and lotion might be small, but the gesture is bigger than words.

“We run to the people in need,” said Northeastern University School of Nursing Assistant Dean Stacey Waite. “We go to those that are sometimes put aside. The foundation of nursing is service to others, to be there for others and that all humans are respected and all humans have worth.”

Dozens of nursing students from Northeastern University’s School of Nursing assembled these care bags to give to those who have served our country. The service project is built into their curriculum to help them understand nursing goes beyond the care in a clinical setting.

“You can’t really just help people in the acute settings because then we’re not preventing them from needing the acute setting,” said Anna Hebner, a Northeastern University nursing student. “So I feel that getting out there in your community and helping out is really important with preventing illnesses and helping people feel comfortable and feeling like they have the community that they need.”

Orbis Education partnered with Northeastern to help the nursing program put together a meaningful project while showing their appreciation.

“Something as simple as just basic care needs, especially for veterans, it’s a way for them to feel seen and feel valued and respected, sometimes maybe when they feel forgotten,” said Amanda Poe, the Vice President of Faculty and Development and Training Amanda at Orbis.

The VA Boston Healthcare System is constantly doing outreach to make sure every veteran is not forgotten. The VA Boston Healthcare System houses hundreds of veterans experiencing homelessness each year and in 2024, the organization achieved a 98% success rate in preventing sheltered veterans from returning to homelessness. But still — according to Boston’s homeless census in 2025, 191 veterans live on the city’s streets.

“There’s some reluctance and others think that they don’t deserve the care that they do deserve,” said Damien Powell, a Voluntary Service Specialist with the VA Boston Healthcare System. “And so we try those large outreach efforts in order to let them know, hey, the VA will take care of you. Come to the VA, and we’ll try and do anything that we need to help you with what you need.”

While state and local governments are working to end veteran homelessness through housing programs and expanded benefits, these nursing students are understanding their assignment.

“I feel like any community I join, I want to be helpful and I want to be like a participating member and an advocate for people that need more help than I do myself,” said Hebner.

The Boston VA Healthcare System is always looking for donations — whether it’s funds or items to hand out to veterans. Due to demand, the Boston VA Healthcare System served nearly one thousand veterans and their families in two days at Gillette last year — connecting them to important resources and programs they were eligible for.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

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