By DAN TOMASELLO
LYNNFIELD — Four high school sophomores recently held a successful collection drive for veterans in need.
Close friends Jake Connell, Drew Carney, Dylan Damiani and Joe Raffa held a collections drive for homeless veterans. Jake, Dylan and Joe suit up for the Lynnfield High boys’ hockey team while Drew plays defense for the Essex Tech boys’ hockey team.
Jake said the four friends were inspired to undertake the fundraiser after his father, Select Board member Joe Connell, informed them about the challenges homeless veterans experience every day.
“I asked my dad why are there veterans’ homes in Massachusetts,” said Jake. “He told me there are some veterans who do not have families and there are some who do not have the finances to be put in a nursing home for long-term care. He said homeless veterans could use some basic necessities. I have known Joe, Dylan and Drew a long time, and we thought it would be a great idea to do a donation drive.”
Jake said the four friends used his mom Kate’s Venmo account to collect funds as part of the effort. He said the community donated $1,450.
Dylan said the friends also decided to hold a collection drive at Lynnfield Middle School’s front entrance in early March, where a number of residents donated a variety of toiletries as well as clothing.
“People dropped off a ton of necessities that homeless veterans need,” said Dylan. “The items we collected included shaving cream, toothpaste, toothbrushes, deodorant, toiletries, shampoo, shavers and hair conditioner. We had a lot of people who came and donated to help us support our veterans.”
Joe Raffa agreed.
“We collected basic supplies that homeless veterans need as well as T-shirts and underwear,” said Joe. “Our veterans are always helping us, and the least that we could do is give back to them after all they have done for our country.”
Drew concurred with his friends’ sentiment.
“It’s a really good cause,” said Drew. “I am really happy that the Lynnfield community donated money to the Venmo account as well as countless toiletries. We had a lot of people chip in and help us out.”
Dylan said Mr. Connell, who is a retired U.S. Army colonel who served in Afghanistan, Iraq and Somalia, inspired his son and his three friends to hold the fundraiser. He retired from the U.S. Army in 2014.
“We wanted to help people like Mr. Connell,” said Dylan. “Mr. Connell reached out to a bunch homeless veteran shelters and people who helped make our project a success.”
Drew concurred with Dylan’s sentiment.
“Mr. Connell did a great job helping us organize the fundraiser through all of his contacts,” said Drew.
Jake said the four friends will be donating the items they collected to the North Shore Veterans Outreach Center in Beverly, Habitat Plus in Lynn, the New England Center and Home for Veterans in Boston and the Western Massachusetts Bilingual Veterans Outreach Center in Springfield.
“All four veterans’ homeless shelters are super excited about our fundraiser, and they are looking forward to meeting us,” said Jake. “This is the least that we can do for our country’s heroes who are in need.”
Joe said he is “looking forward to seeing the smiles on veterans’ faces when we donate the items.”
“We will be delivering them in the next couple of weeks,” said Joe.
Joe thanked the Lynnfield community for supporting the four friends’ fundraiser.
“The community was incredibly supportive of our fundraiser,” said Joe. “We had a lot of people show up to the collection drive at the middle school, and we received a lot of donations. It was great we received so much support from our town.”
Drew was blown away by the community’s response to the collection drive for homeless veterans.
“It was great seeing so many members of the community come together to support our veterans,” said Drew.
Jake thanked the four friends’ parents for supporting them throughout the fundraiser.
“Our parents were a huge support system for us and helped us make this fundraiser a tremendous success,” said Jake. “Dylan, Drew, Joe and I couldn’t be more grateful for their support.”
Jake, Dylan, Drew and Joe thanked the following individuals and groups for supporting the veterans’ collection drive: Lynnfield American Legion Post 131, Select Board member Phil Crawford and his wife Ellen, Select Board Chairman Dick Dalton and his wife Carmela, Gina Antidormi, Vicki and Tom Mackay, Lauren Wolf, Linda Manzo, Sue and Ted Mosher, Tom and Kathy Connell, Kathy and Bill McDonald, Al and Lori Raffa, Darren and Jill Damiani, Dave and Patrice O’Connor, Sarah Shields, Nancy and Rick Rollins, Donna DiGiovanni and Mark Driscoll and family.
The friends also thanked Leo and Jill Barrett, Barbara and Chris Weldon, Thomas Bogart, William Maney, Aaron Andrioli, Melanie Scoppettuolo, Chris Sheils, Katie Neenan, Stuart Spitzer, Sanjay and Natasha Aurora, Annette Anderson, Paula Fullerton, Susan Nugent, Bill and Pixie Brudnick, Dan McSweeney, Raeann Evitts, Ellen Evitts, Rob and Jessica Look, Mark and Carolyn Scollard, Bridget and Kevin Sullivan, Debra and Brian Roberts, Barbara Cuozzo, Denise Martinage, Debbie Mitchell, the Breslow Family, Joe and Rita Riess, Donna Conlon, Donna Tassone, Stacey and Jonathan Cook, Sue and Neil Hayden, Tom and Jen Carney, Richard and Claudia Davis, Mark Vermont, Drew and Jen Lucich, John and Judith Harrigan, Mia Peluso, Matt Kennedy, Patti Brangiforte, Mike Fitzmeyer, Joe and Kate Connell, and Veterans Services Officer Bruce Siegel.
Jake noted that Dylan’s father Darren, who is a fifth-grade math and science teacher at Lynnfield Middle School, has decided to continue the homeless veterans fundraiser moving forward.
“There are several middle school teachers who want to continue this donation drive every year,” said Jake. “It’s great.”
Mr. Connell was incredibly touched by the community’s support for the four friends’ fundraiser for homeless veterans.
“It’s great that Darren Damiani will be continuing this fundraiser in the future,” said Mr. Connell. “The four sites that the kids are donating the items to are overwhelmed about the amount of items that have been donated. I am so proud of the patriotism in this town. Our town is very dedicated to our first responders and veterans.”
Veterans Services Officer Bruce Siegel thanked Jake, Dylan, Drew and Joe for holding the fundraiser in a recent Letter to the Editor.
“As Lynnfield’s Director of Veterans Services, I compliment these four young men for organizing the drive, and recognizing the many sacrifices our veterans make,” Siegel wrote. “I would also like to acknowledge the fine job done by their parents in raising them. You can be proud of their successful completion of this project. On behalf of this great town as well as all veterans, I congratulate and thank you all for a job well done.”