The public-private partnership program connects veterans and transitioning service members with community resources and employment.

As 88 of 99 counties in Iowa continue to bleed population, Ryan West, deputy director of Iowa Workforce Development, said attracting veterans from the 150,000-200,000 that leave the service every year will be vital to the state’s economy as it continues to struggle to fill skilled positions, particularly in rural areas.

“Hiring veterans is something that’s such a big deal to us,” said West, appearing on behalf of Gov. Kim Reynolds. “This attracts vets around the world and brings back veterans from Iowa.”

In addition to hundreds of thousands of veterans, Iowa employers can reach veterans’ spouses, 25 % of whom are unemployed.

-Messenger photo by Elijah Decious
The Color Guard starts Thursday’s Home Base Iowa dedication ceremony, designating Pocahontas County as a participating community in the state program that helps attract veterans to Iowa.

The ceremony Wednesday was the last step in bringing the program to fruition after the Pocahontas County Economic Development Commission secured business partners to offer incentives to attract veterans to the area, said coordinator Gretchen Reichter.

To qualify for the program, the county had to have at least 10% of its businesses signed up, which it exceeded.

New signs will also be displayed on every highway entrance into the county to proudly show off the designation to travelers.

Businesses can now use the program website’s “find a veteran” feature as they look to fill skilled positions.

County supervisors also passed a resolution in favor of the proposal recently — something they mistakenly thought they had done eight years ago, perhaps indicative of how supportive the community already was of veterans.

“We have a lot of jobs available in this county now,” said Tom Grau, executive director of PCEDC.

He stressed the important role the new program will play in connection with the new Iowa Central Community College training center in Laurens that offers technical skills and training.

“Training’s going to be key,” to filling positions, he said, saying the county is working hard to make it available as innovatively as possible.

“My main concern is we take advantage of (the program),” said Dick Gruber, mayor of Pocahontas. “Sometimes we don’t push as hard as I think we should. We have to get in there and push.”

Twenty-two year Navy veteran K.J. Lettow spoke on how the program helped him come back home to “Pokey.”

Vets can “very easily go somewhere else,” if Iowa doesn’t compete in a global economy, the ten-time-deployed Iraqi veteran said.

“I was looking at a John Deere tractor in the middle of the desert,” he recalled as he told of one of his experiences overseas, “and all I could think of was how long it would take me to get back here.”

He’s grateful to Home Base Iowa for helping make his transition home to civilian life a smooth one.