Michael Russo’s Mission with Shoreline Veterans
As part of our Avangrid in the Community series, we’re shining the spotlight on employees who generously give their time and energy to passions that drive them.
Michael Russo has spent 18 years as a lineworker at United Illuminating (UI) in Connecticut, helping keep the lights on and the community moving. But outside of work, he devotes countless hours to something just as vital: supporting local veterans and their families through Shoreline Veterans Corporation, a nonprofit he founded.
Mike Russo (left) and the Shoreline Veterans organization he founded regularly raises money for veterans in need.
The idea began simply. In 2008, Russo and three friends gathered on Veterans Day because “there was nothing really happening and we wanted to do something for veterans.” Each year, more people showed up. They raised $300 one year, made T-shirts the next, and momentum kept building. Four years ago, when fundraising started to increase, Russo enlisted the help of his attorney sister and filed the paperwork to officially make Shoreline Veterans a nonprofit.
Today Shoreline Veterans hosts an annual event that draws more than 200 people, with hopes of topping 300 this year. Its mission is straightforward: honor service and help veterans in need. Instead of complicated programs, the group raises funds and hands checks directly to families for groceries, bills, home repairs, whatever will make life easier.
From Backyard Gathering to Community Force
The impact is personal and immediate. Shoreline Veterans recently worked with Homes for Veterans to renovate two bathrooms for a disabled veteran so he could safely bathe and care for himself. Another time, a Branford restaurant asked for help with a service member facing medical setbacks. The place was packed with neighbors, police, and firefighters, and by night’s end the group handed the family $10,000. “You look around and see people from all walks of life show up for the same purpose,” Russo says. “It’s okay to feel proud about that. This is a need, and we’re doing something good together.”
Russo understands those needs. He served three years in the U.S. Army from 1995 to 1998, gaining benefits and opportunities he knew how to access. But at VA offices he saw older veterans in rough shape, men and women who did not know where to turn. “There’s a gap,” he explains. “Some veterans fall through the cracks and don’t have access or even the opportunity to find the help they deserve.”
At Shoreline Veterans, Russo leads as founder and president alongside a board that includes fellow UI employees such as Vice President Pete Hawley. Dozens of colleagues and retirees volunteer, many logging well over the 100 hours recognized by Avangrid’s Energized for Good program. The initiative supports volunteerism by donating to nonprofit organizations where employees serve. For every hour an employee volunteers at an eligible organization, the Avangrid Foundation donates $15 to that organization – up to $1,500 (or 100 volunteer hours) per employee.
The results speak for themselves. Since late 2024, Shoreline Veterans has provided $51,000 in direct support to eight veterans and awarded $6,000 in scholarships to children of veteran families. National and regional companies now sponsor the effort, and each year the network of volunteers grows larger.
For Russo, the work reinforces the importance of community. “If you bring folks together with the right mission, it spreads like wildfire,” he says. “People want to be part of something that helps their neighbors.”
His advice to anyone considering volunteering is to simply start. Whether it is one hour or one hundred, he says, it all matters. And for veterans especially, the need is ongoing. “I wish more people were aware of the sacrifice these soldiers have given,” Russo says. “It is not about praising them, it is about getting out there, showing up, and helping.”
From a backyard gathering of four friends to a nonprofit that has touched dozens of lives, Shoreline Veterans is proof that small acts can grow into something powerful. Russo may spend his workdays keeping the power on, but his greatest impact may be the light he and his team bring to those who served.
Learn more or get involved at shorelinevets.org.
