Students in Service and Leadership at Harvard

My Story of Service

Hi! My name is Rachel Saganty! I am a senior in Dunster House, concentrating in Molecular and Cellular Biology with a secondary in Global Health and Health Policy. I am very interested in medicine, health, and health disparities, especially among disadvantaged groups. During my undergraduate years, I was involved in organizations that helped me gain experience in care settings. I volunteered with PBHA’s HARTZ program since my sophomore year and then became one of its co-directors during my senior year. I also volunteered in a clinic through Crimson Care Collaborative and worked on transcription research at Harvard Medical School during my junior and senior year.

For the last year and a half, I have been a serving on the resource advocacy team at HSHS, working with directors, staff members, and fellow resource advocates (RAs) to address the needs of individuals experiencing homelessness in Harvard Square and the Cambridge community. As a resource advocate, my role involves three major goals: case management, emergency services, and community advocacy. Much of my work in the shelter involves one-on-one sessions with guests at the shelter; I work with guests to establish and work towards long-term goals such as permanent housing, employment, and healthcare. While these are the standing long-term goals for all the guests at the shelter, on a week by week basis, my work consists of providing guests with different resources. Some of the resources that RAs provide include:In addition to the resources provided to guests staying in the shelter, RAs also provide referrals and assistance to individuals who are sleeping outside and to those whose stay at the shelter will end soon. These resources often include food, clothing, transportation passes, and information about shelters.

I joined the Harvard Square Homeless Shelter Resource Advocacy program because I wanted to be involved in work that directly affected the Cambridge community. When I arrived on campus, it was a shocking to see how present the issue of homelessness was in Harvard Square. It was so upsetting to see how many individuals were forced to survive the brutal winters in Boston, especially during my freshman year when we were hit by multiple blizzards. I wanted to not only be exposed to the harsh realities of homelessness, inequity, and social justice issues, but have the opportunity to actively work to address these injustices and bridge the gap between individuals experiencing homelessness and higher socioeconomic classes. But I didn’t know how to address this issue on my own and it really wasn’t until my roommate began volunteering with HSHS that I felt like I could be a part of an organization that could help me engage in a meaningful way.  During my junior year, I decided to apply to be a member of the Resource Advocacy program because I wanted to build substantial and supportive long-term relationships with individuals experiencing homelessness. While there were many different ways to get involved at the shelter, I was particularly drawn to this program because I wanted to get to know these individuals, hear their stories and help and support them in whatever way possible. 

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