Harbor Care CEO And Director Recognized For Leading New Hampshire Veteran Homelessness Efforts

CONCORD, NH — Henry Och, the president and CEO of Harbor Care, and Katie Tovar Paciulan, Director of Veteran Services, received state recognition Wednesday for their leadership in efforts to end veteran homelessness.

Gov. Kelly Ayotte and the New Hampshire Executive Council presented Och with a Recognition for Excellence in Service to New Hampshire Veterans.

The New Hampshire State Veterans Council recommended the recognition. This council nominates individuals and organizations for their service to veterans, with honorees recognized by the Governor and the state’s Adjutant General.

Och and Harbor Care play a role in the statewide initiative, Ending Veteran Homelessness in New Hampshire. This effort is led by the New Hampshire State Veterans Council, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, and community partners. The initiative aims to achieve functional zero veteran homelessness through coordinated housing placement, landlord engagement, and targeted support services.

"We've made real progress, but the work is not finished," Och said. "Our goal is to build a system where veteran homelessness is rare, brief, and non-recurring. That outcome only happens when communities, government agencies, and nonprofit partners work together with urgency and shared purpose."

During the past 18 months, Och and Harbor Care collaborated with Manchester Mayor Jay Ruais and other community partners. This partnership focused on ending veteran homelessness in Manchester. Initially, 47 veterans were identified as experiencing homelessness in the city. Since then, partners have secured stable housing for 84 veterans, including all 47 from the initial list. Manchester has met three of the four federal benchmarks for measuring progress toward ending veteran homelessness.

Harbor Care and its partners previously reached a similar milestone in Nashua in 2017. Veteran homelessness was effectively ended there through a coordinated community response. This approach now informs the broader statewide effort. Harbor Care assists over 5,000 individuals annually with housing, healthcare, and veteran services.

Editor's note: This post has been updated to include a second person also given the award. That information was not included in the original press release.