Each year on November 11, Americans are asked to pause and thank our military veterans – perhaps by donating to a veterans cause, volunteering at a VA center or sending care packages to soldiers overseas. But according to veteran and former POW Ralph Galati ’70 (USAF), director of Veteran Services at Saint Joseph’s University, perhaps one of the most impactful and enduring ways to support our vets is to “hire them and patronize their businesses!”
“Reach out to your local Chamber of Commerce or County Veterans Office and find out about the veteran-owned businesses in your area and support them,” says Galati. “And if you know a veteran looking for a job or starting a business, point them in the direction of local resources to help them get started.”
One such resource is the Office of Veterans Services at SJU.
In addition to helping veterans and their dependents gain access to government benefits and guiding them through the process of completing a degree, the office also offers unique entrepreneurship programs for veterans looking to start their own businesses.
This spring, SJU will launch its first cohort of the Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities (EBV), a three-phase, free-of-charge program for post-9/11 military veterans with disabilities and honorable discharge status, in partnership with Syracuse University’s Institute for Veterans and Military Families.
“When veterans leave combat, they enter into a difficult period of readjustment and transition,” says Galati. “They go from such a structured environment in the military to the freedom of civilian life. Building a meaningful career can be essential to adjusting to, and finding fulfillment in, civilian life for a veteran.”
Entrepreneurship programs like SJU’s, mentorships and support from local community members can make all the difference in a veteran finding success.
“Your patronage, your support of veterans careers, means more than you may realize,” says Galati. “It’s a great way to say ‘thank you for your service.’”
For more information about applying to the EBV program, veterans should visit www.sju.edu/veterans. The application deadline for the spring cohort is December 18. For more information, contact SJU’s Office of Veteran Services at [email protected].
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