When my father returned from his tour of duty in Italy at the end of World War II, he came home to a hero’s welcome. He had postponed college and risked his life in service to our country. He came back to not only a welcoming community but to programs supporting his reentry such as the GI-Bill. Unfortunately, the same kind of welcome that my dad received was not evident in the Vietnam era and we can see many of the causalities of this failed situation today. A couple of years ago I had the opportunity to meet then Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Mullen. He has been very public about the need to do a better job in supporting our veterans. Our First Lady and Dr. Jill Biden have also been working hard in support of veterans along with many other organizations. To their credit, both our government and local communities are waking up and putting in place support mechanisms to help these men and woman re-acclimate and become successful members of society.
Last month I attended the launch event for an innovative new program called the Community Blueprint. The goal of the Community Blueprint is to create a set of tools and practices that provide a framework for communities to produce positive, measurable outcomes for veterans, military members and their families. Points of Light is leading the Community Blueprint coalition of more than 50 veteran and military service organizations, nonprofits and government agencies. ITT Exelis announced an investment of $5 million to the initiative. Michelle Nunn, CEO of Points of Light, said “We hope to create the nation’s largest pipeline of volunteer opportunities focused on meeting the needs of veterans and military families. We intend to harness our nation’s sea of goodwill for our veterans and turn it into action.” The skills learned in the military can be transferred to civilian purposes and many companies now have programs to help facilitate the hiring of veterans. So in addition to thanking our veterans for their service, lets ensure we have the right services in place to assist them. http://www.pointsoflight.org/programs/military-initiatives/community-blueprint