NORWAY — Employees of a local business answered a plea for household items and clothing to local veterans.

When Kevin Nicholson of Maine Homeless Veterans Alliance arrived to pick up a donation, a U-Haul truck was packed with new and gently used items including furniture.

“When we were loading up the van, I noticed that (employees) went out and purchased new items as well. There were quite a few packages of underwear and socks, as well as flip flops, sheet sets and even some new clothing. I even saw a tent,” said Chris McMann, who helped organize the drive.

“I spoke with Kevin after they loaded up the furniture from the off-site storage. He was overwhelmed,” McMann said. “I had previously told him we had gathered quite a bit, but it was far more than he was expecting.”

According to MHVA, there are approximately 131 homeless veterans in Maine and with the cooler weather settling in already, they will need a way to stay warm. Many times these veterans would be placed into housing but would only have shelter with no place to sit, eat or sleep but on the floor. The furniture will be distributed immediately to veterans who were just placed into housing to give them a place to rest.

FMI, donate: www.facebook.com/MaineHomelessVeteransAlliance.