Issue 1 October 1, 2016 In this issue: Success Stories On Your Radar VBC Funds EMT Training FC4 Run Recap Cover Photo: Members of the VBC’s team Victor Bravo Charlie pose before running in the Firecracker 4.

The Veteran’s Business Council This newsletter is published by the Veterans Business Council (VBC) under the auspices of the Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce. Not only do we hope that you find it interesting, but more importantly, we hope that you will help us in putting qualified, deserving veterans to work. The mission of the VBC is to put veterans to work, assist them in the process of finding employment with items such as resume’ writing or finding opportunities for those veterans who lean toward entrepreneurship of some kind. We are a board made up of 23 veterans of each of our U.S. services. Since we are an arm of the Chamber of Commerce, whose membership is in excess of 2,000 members; we feel this gives us a major advantage that would not be available to someone working by themselves. Our plan is to publish this newsletter quarterly so that we will reach even more businesses, and will also reach the veteran looking for another avenue which will get him/her in front of people looking to hire people. The newsletter, as you can see, will showcase active resumes, as well as those businesses anxious to put people to work!

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Success Stories Earlier this year, Joshua Montgomery of Ballston Spa sent his resume’ to our Chamber Coordinator, Denise Romeo, Ex. V.P. of the Chamber. She, in turn, e-mailed it to Bob Van Pelt who chairs our Outreach Committee, and a retired Army man who heads up the AUSA Capital District Chapter. Soon, Josh was being mentored by Christian Dickinson from Logistics One. Following that mentoring, and in a very short period of time, Josh was working for Logistics One. There’s obviously more detail to the story, but we’ll leave that for when YOU get a chance to work with our Council.

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A Call To Action – We Need Your Help! It is our hope that you will help us connect with any Veterans you may know. You can help us close the gap between companies who have opportunities and those in need of a job. Please email dromeo@saratoga.org to find out how you can help.

Dan Colvin Welcome/Update

On behalf of the Saratoga County Veterans Business Council, I welcome you all to the first quarterly edition of the Reveille! Thank you for taking the time to read this first installment. It is our hope that you will share the information it provides with Veterans within your own personal and professional networks, to help us to connect to an even greater array of local Veterans. I am incredibly proud of the volunteer efforts of the twenty-three Veteran business owners and business leaders that make up our Council; their efforts continue to make a positive impact in our local veteran community! Dan Colvin Chairman Saratoga County Veterans Business Council

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On Your Radar Upcoming Events and Opportunities

Sunday, October 9, 2016 – VBC Fundraiser at The Way We Were Car Show (Rain Date, Sunday, October 16, 2016) 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Free Admission Front Street, Downtown Ballston Spa, New York The VBC will be raising funds by selling Fried Bread Dough at this popular regional event, put on by The Ballston Spa Business and Professional Association and the Saratoga Automobile Museum. Front Street will be blocked off from Milton Avenue past the Old Iron Springs to accommodate car exhibits and vendors. Besides the hundreds of show cars, enjoy live music, food and family activities. Saturday, October 29, 2016 – Veterans Ball 6:00 to 10:00 p.m., $50 per person Saratoga Military Museum, 61 Lake Ave. Saratoga Springs, NY 12866 518-885-0091 for more information To support VetHelp’s homeless veteran housing programs. November 1st & 2nd, 2016 - Boots to Business 8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. Chamber Offices; 28 Clinton Street; Saratoga Springs Free of Charge for Veterans and their spouses Training program that provides overview of business ownership Michael Stout; Small Business Administration; (315) 471-9393 x. 226 for more information November 5, 2016 - Revolutionary Run 8:30 a.m. Registration/10:00 5k kicks off; $25 pre-event signup/$30 day of Fort Hardy Park, Schuylerville Register at: www.finishright.com All proceeds to benefit Saratoga County Veterans Trust & Agency Fund November 14, 2016 – Veteran’s Day Event at the Golden Corral Saratoga hosted by the Golden Corral & Disabled American Veterans Chapter 158 11:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. The Golden Corral, 15 Old Gick Road, Saratoga Springs If you know of a Veteran organization interested in participating, contact Joe Pennell by calling 518-290-3030 or via email to commander@dav158ny.org.

Leap of Kindness Day You may have heard….on a Leap Year, the Month of February has 29 days. The President of the Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce, Todd Shimkus, came up with a brilliant idea. He challenged everyone to do something good with the extra 24 hours we had, and which we were always asking for, in this busy world of ours. He named it The Leap of Kindness day. It was a huge success. We in the VBC were proud to participate, and even more proud of the fact that people with whom we had professional contact jumped in with both feet to help from the veteran’s point of view. One of these was Sanders Meat Market. The kind, and hardworking folks there, put together $1,000 worth of meat donations. This wonderful largess was given to the Saratoga County Rural Preservation Corporation; an organization that runs the male/female homeless veteran houses in Ballston Spa. Other businesses supported the effort by serving as food drop-off locations. These included Gunning Elite Training in Ballston Spa, Hub Powered by Migrate in Saratoga Springs, Price Chopper, and multiple Saratoga National Bank locations. Thank you to all who helped in this effort, for your donation and kindness!

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VBC Members pose with Tim Sanders of Sanders Meat Market in Ballston Spa. Pictured from left to right are: Dan Colvin, Denise Romeo, Tim Sanders, Michelle Taylor, Todd Shimkus and Joe Russell

VBC members and Todd Shimkus at Gunning Elite Training – one of the food drop-off locations. Pictured from left to right are: Todd Shimkus, Matt Gunning, Michelle Taylor, Denise Romeo and Dan Colvin

EMT Training Course Funded by the VBC We are extremely proud of our ability to donate $1,500 to Clifton Park-Halfmoon EMS. This fine organization put together a FREE EMT Training Program for Veterans looking for a career in helping their community by being an EMT. Our donation helped to cover the supplies that the students needed. The inaugural class was offered in the Spring of 2016 and graduated 12 students. Clifton Park Halfmoon Emergency Corps recently announced they will be offering a second free EMT Course for Military Veterans. This is the second course that the CPHM will offering. Please visit http://cphmems.org/news/cphm-offer-free-emt-course-veterans for more information.

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Caption: Chamber President Todd Shimkus and VBC Chairman Dan Colvin present a check to the first Clifton Park-Halfmoon EMT Veteran Training Class

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Honor & Integrity Among Us - The Patriot Flight Story

Patriot Flight had its first flight in 2008. The founder of Patriot Flight is Bill Peak who was 83 years old and a WW II Veteran. He was stationed stateside and wanted to recognize and honor those Veterans who fought overseas. He had the wisdom, insight and desire to form an all volunteer federal non profit organization that was the 2nd hub in New York State.

His vision was a day long trip to Washington DC with WW II Veterans. Now in 2016 we have expanded to also take Korean, Vietnam War Veterans and unique guests on the flights. The week before the trip we have a Pre Flight Meeting with all the Veterans and guardians. We take group photos and fill the room with the camaraderie and laughter. Flight day begins with a Send Off ceremony from the Marriott, Desmond Hotel or the CBA High School with a coffee or breakfast. These two events are memorable events in themselves and open to the public. After an hour long flight to Baltimore Airport , the Veterans receive a ‘Welcome Home’ reception many Veterans have never experienced. Visits to the WW II, Korean, Vietnam, Iwo Jima Memorials and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the Arlington Cemetery are all accomplished in one day. At day’s end back in Albany an emotional reunion with family and friends at the Albany airport concludes a ‘Trip of a Lifetime.’ We are so proud to take the “Greatest Generation” of WW II. The 90 year old Veterans are an inspiration to everyone on the trip. The Veterans of Korean fought the “Forgotten War.” We call them the ‘Unforgotten Generation.” You can see their spirits raised to feel remembered and not forgotten. The Vietnam Veterans are our “Unforsaken Generation” who fought two wars during their service – in a country many never knew existed and then in the USA. Current troops today should thank and shake hands with a Vietnam Veteran. These great men endured and taught our country that no troops should be treated the way they were when they returned home.

Each edition will feature a story on other Veteran Organizations.

VBC Joins In The Fun At The Firecracker4 Run

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VBC members Chris Homicz and Dan Colvin, both US Marines, led a group of veterans participating in the Firecracker 4 run held on July 4th in downtown Saratoga Springs. In total unison; calling cadence, this impressive group spent their morning of 4th of July raising awareness for the Veterans Business Council and the work we do. Thank you to the Firecracker 4 for letting the VBC be a part of this year’s event.!

New Fundraising Calendar Available in October !

Beginning in 2015, the VBC has published a calendar featuring Veterans and Veteran’s activities. With funds raised via this project, the VBC has been able to support other local Veteran organizations/programs; some of which you see in this newsletter. For more information on how you can purchase your calendar, contact Denise Romeo at dromeo@saratoga.org or by calling 584-3255. This is our 2016 calendar cover featuring photos submitted by our VBC members.

Ally Andolina -DeCrescente Distributing Chris Bozeth - General Electric Morgan Brooks - Merrill Lynch Jason Cahill - Logistics One Nick Caimano - Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce Karen Charbonneau - Miranda Real Estate Group Erica Choi – Bank of America Dan Colvin - Momentive Performance Materials Dave Cummings - The Run at Saratoga Greg Dixon - The Wesley Community Don Hillmann - Couch White, LLC Chris Homicz – Regeneron Pharmaceuticals ________________________________________________ For more information, contact: Denise Romeo Executive Vice President, Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce 518-584-3255 dromeo@saratoga.org

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(left to right back row) T. Stock, B. Nevins, B. Van Pelt, C. Homicz, M. Kennedy, K. Charbonneau, K. Prairie, N. Caimano, M. Taylor, D. Romeo (front row) G. Dixon, A. Andolina, D. Colvin, C. Bozeth, E. Choi, D. Cummings

Scott Iseman - O’Connell and Aronowitz, PC Michael Kennedy - Saratoga Bridges Bob Nevins - Saratoga War Horse Joe Pennell - Ayco Keith Prairie - Martin’s Point Health Care Tom Stock - Stock Studios Photography Laurel Tator - The Stanton Nursing & Rehabilitation Center Michelle Taylor - Logo Wearhaus Robert Van Pelt - AUSA Capital District Chapter