From the outbox of Meyer’s inbox –
Here’s a great article about discussing some of the positive feedback from Enable America’s Disabled Veteran Employment Mentoring Month. Seems like this idea of matching up vets who are willing to learn and work with employers was a rousing success. In case you’ve never heard of Enable America, check them out. It’s worth the visit!
Nonprofit Helps Disable Vets Network for Jobs by Vincent Davis writing for My San Antonio.
After hiring veterans for subcontract projects at Fort Hood, Patricia Cullum is familiar with the work ethic of military members. Cullum, a senior project manager at JSR Inc., takes every opportunity to hire vets for the commercial and industrial construction company. She said she likes their dedication, and their regimentation traits, though not listed on resumes, catch her eye.
When she learned about a project providing employment to disabled military veterans at Fort Sam Houston, she was one of the first employers at the site. Cullum interviewed Navy retiree Keith Ferguson at the Clark Construction offices at the San Antonio Military Medical Center-North, part of the Brooke Army Medical Center expansion project.
Inside a network of trailers dwarfed by skeletal structures, Ferguson told Cullum he quit his job to go to school full time and earn a safety and health certificate.
“I was very impressed with him and the way he carried himself,” Cullum said after the interview. “He made the commitment to take the courses needed, and safety is important to us. He’s exactly what we’re looking for.”
Ferguson was one of seven veterans who took part in the training and job interview event Thursday morning. Enable America and Clark and Hunt Construction companies sponsored the event. Organizers said they would send the resumes of veterans not selected at Thursday’s event to 130 contractors in the area. Enable America designated November as Disabled Veteran Employment Mentoring Month to provide workplace experience that could lead to jobs.
Armando Sanchez-Aballi said the nonprofit organization, with headquarters in Tampa, Fla., would open its first San Antonio office in January. “This is part of our mission,” said Sanchez-Aballi, Enable America’s director of business and community connections. “This service provides one stop for employers who will have the opportunity to help, and vets will have their needs met.”
August Ciriello with the VA Vocational Rehabilitation Division contacted the vets attending the event that organizers said was the first seminar for San Antonio. The veterans were paired with workers from the SAMMC-North construction project with similar work interests such as 3-D modeling and heavy machinery.
To check out the rest of the article, click here.
