Friends of Veterans is an all-volunteer organization located near the border of Vermont and New Hampshire. They help out homeless vets in both states by getting them a place to stay, assisting with rent, and providing support with heating costs over the winter.
The group was in the Trump Foundation’s records as having received $1,000 in 2013 ... only they didn't actually get a check from Trump. Worse, in 2016, they were contacted again about getting some of the money from Trump's skip-the-debate "fundraiser." But when they were honest enough to admit they hadn't gotten the first payment, the Trump campaign left them out in the cold. Again.
This January, the phone rang at a tiny charity in White River Junction, Vt., called Friends of Veterans. This was just after Trump had held a televised fundraiser for veterans in Iowa, raising more than $5 million.
The man on the phone was a Trump staffer who was selecting charities that would receive the newly raised money. He said the Vermont group was already on Trump’s list, because the Trump Foundation had given it $1,000 in 2013.
“I don’t remember a donation from the Trump Foundation,” said Larry Daigle, the group’s president, who was a helicopter gunner with the Army during the Vietnam War. “The guy seemed pretty surprised about this.” [...]
“Oh, my God, do you know how many homeless veterans I could help?” Daigle told The Post this spring, while he was waiting.
Trump gave away the rest of the veterans money in late May.
Daigle’s group received none of it.
But just because Trump left them waiting by the phone, doesn’t mean you have to. Winter really is coming, and Friends of Veterans helps over 120 vets a year get in out of the snow. So we’ve set up a GoFundMe page where the money goes straight to Friends of Veterans.
Just click right here to show you're more generous than Donald Trump.
Each year the twelve volunteers at Friends of Veterans help over ten times that many vets come in out of the cold. There's no paid staff and few expenses—just a group of men and women who know what these folks are going through and want to help.
Many of the volunteers are themselves veterans, and have suffered the kind of injuries and trauma that ends up putting so many vets in tough situations. They're not just friends; they're family.
So here's a chance to get them the cash they missed out on when Trump turned them away.
Each vet that the group works with takes an average of $600. So a $2,000 contribution would be enough to give three homeless vets a home before winter sets in, and maybe pay a few heating bills on the side. Friends of Veterans has also started working with other groups to get service dogs—which the VA prescribes but doesn't provide—to the vets who need them. As it turns out, $2,000 would be just enough to provide one of those dogs to a vet who really needs the help.
What to really make America great(er)? Get our veterans off the streets. This is a real charity, staffed by caring volunteers, working to help homeless vets. You are not going to find anything better than that when it comes to making an investment in Doing Good.
Send these guys some help. Here’s that GoFundMe Page again.
Thanks.