Group Helps Disabled Vets Find Jobs

By Samantha L. Quigley
American Forces Press Service

Nov. 29, 2007 - Disabled veterans looking for employment opportunities have one more resource working for them. Hire Heroes USA, a program of the Georgia-based Health Careers Foundation, is working to link disabled veterans to employment opportunities nationwide. "Our mission is to be the bridge to a fulfilling career for our returning heroes with disabilities," said Bayne E. Tippins, director of the Hire Heroes USA program. "(We) want to ensure they have the opportunity to enjoy the freedoms they fought so hard to preserve."

The program offers career placement services to wounded veterans, regardless of their disability or its severity, Tippins said. To make these placements happen, Hire Heroes USA matches career interests and transferable skills to the needs of hiring companies who partner with the program.

"Now in our fifth month of operation, Hire Heroes USA is assisting more than 2,000 disabled veterans who are searching for career opportunities," Tippins said. "The program has received support through jobs (that need filling) and financial donations from more than 40 companies."

Hire Heroes USA is a new supporter of the Defense Department's America Supports You program, which connects citizens and corporations with military personnel and their families serving at home and abroad.

Tippins said he hopes to spread the program's message far and wide through the America Supports You network to reach those who could benefit from Hire Heroes USA.

"America Supports You will be a vital tool to ensure the continued success of Hire Heroes USA," Tippins said, adding that improvements in body armor and advances in medical technology are dramatically improving survival rates on the battlefield.

"Now more than ever before, our nation's disabled veterans will need support as they seek to establish productive lives, take care of their families and establish new careers," he said. "Programs such as Hire Heroes USA ... are instrumental in helping our wounded soldiers succeed I today's competitive job market."