Female Homeless Veteran Heading to Harvard University

Alicia Watkins Was A Homeless Veteran 5 Years Ago. Now She's A Student At Harvard University
(VIDEO)
Huffington Post
Posted: 03/25/2015

Alicia Watkins is a retired Air Force staff sergeant who proudly served in Iraq and Afghanistan. She risked her life for the freedom of others, survived the 9/11 attack on the Pentagon, and watched her colleagues die. But it wasn't any of her combat experiences that broke Watkins' spirit; it was the fact that she retired from the military and found herself homeless.

In 2010, Watkins' allowed "The Oprah Winfrey Show" to document her life as a homeless veteran. Her "kitchen" was a cardboard box of snacks and microwavable meals. Her bed was a car that she rented for $10 a day. Her restrooms were the toilets at various airport hotels.

"It might have been different had I not seen the children and the babies. So, I decided to be on the street and put them in the room," Watkins told Oprah five years ago. "Why wouldn't I?"

Since that emotional interview, a lot has changed for Watkins, who recently sent an update to "Oprah: Where Are They Now?" In the above video, she shares a surprising truth: Until her 'Oprah Show' interview aired, Watkins' friends and family had no idea she was homeless.
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