With the fall semester now in full swing, one Le Moyne College student has a lot of work ahead of him and it's not all studying. That's because he'll be regularly picking up bottles and cans for a good cause. Our Elizabeth Jeneault has more on what the money will go toward.
SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- The sound of a bottle or can being recycled in one of the 50 bins Derek Matina helped place around campus makes him happy. That's because the money from the recycling goes toward his non-profit's scholarship fund for veterans.
"The pre-9/11 vets and even the vets who are post-9/11 that might have some economic hardships," explained Matina, a sophomore at Le Moyne College.
Since he founded Sustainability for Scholarships in January, he has regularly picked up the bags of bottles and cans on campus. He and others have also done so at various events this summer and their efforts are beginning to pay off. The non-profit will soon hand out its first scholarship.
"We raised between $2,000 and $3,000 and we're actually going to be giving it away on Veteran's Day," said Matina.
Matina's grandfather inspired him to form the non-profit. He served in World War II and after he came home, assisted disabled veterans.
"I'm very passionate about veterans in general myself," said Matina. "So, from kind of the influence that I had from him I want to keep working on giving back."
"Derek's work embodies really what we're trying to accomplish in terms of supporting student entrepreneurship, engagement in the community," said W. Michael Short, president of the Global Social Enterprise Initiative at Le Moyne College.
While the sophomore's work has certainly impressed those at Le Moyne College, all he cares about is getting as many people as possible to recycle so that more veterans can receive the education they deserve.
He hopes to raise close to $7,000 this year and bring the recycling program to other colleges.