San Antonio – Hundreds of military community members are participating in an event at the Boeing Center at Tech Port Arena Wednesday to prepare and connect them to in-demand careers.
The event at the Boeing Center at Tech Port Arena was a partnership between the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s Hiring Our Heroes , Joint Base San Antonio and Port San Antonio.
San Antonio resident Olivia Valerio said everything changed after attending this event four years ago.
“I was able to go ahead and learn so much through their support and military spouses, which led to a wonderful opportunity working for Hiring Our Heroes,” Valerio said.
Now, Valerio works at HEB in the Military Bridges Program to empower military families through advocacy and education.
Valerio attended the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s Hiring Our Heroes event Wednesday morning and welcomes others to participate.
“Bring your best attitude,” Valerio said. “Bring your best smile. Bring an open mind as you are ready to absorb all the information we have to offer.”
The Hiring Our Heroes event is filled with workshops and a career fair.
“It’s an exciting, packed-filled day. As the day goes on, we will hear from experts in industry, and then moving to the afternoon, come on down because that’s when it gets great. We get to go to the hiring event and connect with employers on site,” said Elizabeth O’Brien, Executive Director of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s Hiring Our Heroes.
Since 2011, the organization has worked to connect the military community with employment opportunities.
Hiring Our Heroes reports that more than half a million veterans and military spouses have found employment through events and programs.
“We know people feel more empowered,” O’Brien said. “We know that they are getting on-site job offers. And what is great about San Antonio is they allow us to come in with a holistic approach where we layer in all year. We have programming for military spouses out in the community. We have prep work leading up to the summit to make sure folks are ready, and ultimately we are able to leverage the grassroots footprint really that we have worldwide for any service member that wants to transition potentially back to San Antonio as well.”
The event brings together over 100 area employers.
The fair takes place from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday.
Those attending are excited to network.
“I’m looking forward to connect with employers that I’m passionate about after I leave the military,” Gamble Monney, who attended the event, said.