Michigan nonprofit bridges gap between Veterans, potential employers

Hire MI Vet is a community nonprofit initiative that collaborates with the VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System and the Veterans Health Administration Homeless Programs Office to focus on competitive employment as a strategy for preventing homelessness. Steady, well-paid employment is key to sustaining permanent housing, so helping Veterans secure good jobs is an important tool in preventing and ending Veteran homelessness.

Hire MI Vet focuses on community involvement, education and hiring events. The initiative has made a range of employment-related services accessible to all Veterans who are unemployed or at risk of becoming unemployed.

Through this initiative and its partner organizations, formerly homeless Veterans are provided with resources to help them understand the civilian job market and re-enter the workforce. At the same time, Hire MI Vet strengthens communities and businesses.

Hire MI Vet works with the following community partners to assist Veterans:

• VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System
• Healthcare for Homeless Veterans Program
• Rotary Club of Ann Arbor
• IV Invest Vets
• Veterans Community Action Teams
• Michigan Works Southeast
• Washtenaw Community College

Hire MI Vet achieved the status of a nonprofit organization in 2018. Since 2015, 211 Veterans have completed job interviews and over 94 have secured employment through the program.

“Hire MI Vet job fairs helped me learn the necessary interviewing skills that allowed me to obtain a job with the Ann Arbor Area Transit Authority as a Motor Coach Operator,” said Veteran Charles Carson. “With assistance from VA and the encouragement and support of people like Curt Behlow and many others, I’ve graduated college and landed a job that I hope to have until retirement.”

Veterans seeking employment opportunities and employers interested in participating in the Michigan area should visit the Hire MI Vet hiring event page to learn more about the annual hiring event and other smaller events throughout the year.

More Information

• Visit hiremivet.org to learn more about the organization and how you can help Veterans exiting homelessness.
• Visit VA’s Homeless Veterans website to learn about employment initiatives and other programs for Veterans exiting homelessness.
• Refer Veterans who are homeless or at imminent risk of becoming homeless to their local VA medical center, where VA staff are ready to assist, or urge them to call 877-4AID-VET (877-424-3838).

Curt Behlow is a Community Employment Coordinator at the VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System and co-chair of Hire MI Vet, a community initiative that helps Veterans gain meaningful employment.