A Brandeis student who, since his sophomore year, has worked with hopeFound, a nonprofit organization that aims to better the lives of homeless people, was awarded a hopeFound Heroes Award for his work with the organization.Aaron Finegold '09 was given the award primarily due to a fundraising gala he planned for hopeFound last February that raised over $4,000 for the organization. The fundraising gala was held at Brandeis and was attended by students and faculty.

The hopeFound Heroes Award is given to "recognize people who within the year have done really extraordinary things, [who] have volunteered and done things for the organization," Finegold said. There were 12 other individuals that were honored with the award.

"Certainly, I feel that it's a great honor, and I am very grateful to hopeFound for the recognition," Finegold said. He added, "I hope my work here at Brandeis can inspire others to take on difficult tasks in the name of social justice in the future. Also, I encourage people to become aware of opportunities to volunteer in the greater Boston area because there is so much need."

Based in Jamaica Plain, Mass., hopeFound aims to better the lives of homeless people in the area. The organization's mission is to "end homelessness, one person at a time, by providing programs and services that help men and women achieve self-sufficiency and secure permanent housing," according to the hopeFound Web site. Finegold added, "[hopeFound] started out as an emergency homeless shelter in 1983. It's not just a shelter; it provides a lot of services so that people can become self-sufficient, including, but not limited to, employment services, stabilization [detoxification program] and help finding housing."

Referring back to his initial interest in organizing a fundraiser, Finegold explained why he became interested in hopeFound. "I was really inspired by [hopeFound's] mission, and I wanted to help them," Finegold said.

Finegold, who is graduating next month, said he still plans to continue working with hopeFound after graduation. "Although I'm moving to [New York City] next year, I still plan on staying in touch, and I would like to potentially help them leverage money in the future.