James A. Haley Veterans’ Hospital - Tampa, Florida

Air Force Veteran Tremayne Maxwell talks with USAA representative Mina Vulpis during the Polytrauma Job Fair June 21.

While more than 900 people came out for the James A. Haley Veterans’ Hospital Job Fair June 24, a smaller, more targeted version took place a few days earlier.

About 36 Veterans, all part of the Vocational Rehabilitation program, had the chance to meet with potential employers in a quieter corner of the hospital June 21 during the first job fair of its kind here.  The fair was an invitation-only event, open to polytrauma patients – those recovering from multiple, severe injuries.

“What we’re finding is that we have this large population of young Veterans who are unable to find jobs or they’re beating their heads against the wall, so we decided to do a job fair specifically for polytrauma patients, those with TBI (traumatic brain injury), PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder), amputation, spinal cord injury,” said Lee Ann Brumble, Vocational Rehabilitation supervisor.  “When you have a severe disability, you have PTSD or you have a brain injury, coming in to an environment that’s loud, distracting, crazy, is an uncomfortable experience.  It’s very difficult to market yourself because all this sensory input is overwhelming.”

Air Force Veteran Tremayne Maxwell was one of the Veterans attending the fair in hopes of landing a job.  He was seriously injured in a motorcycle accident in 2013, including suffering a TBI, and has been going through treatment and rehabilitation at JAHVH since then.

“I’m looking for an administrative type position,” Maxwell said.  “My bachelor’s is in human resources and my graduate degree I’m going for is in administration, so that’s kind of what I want to do.”

Vocational Rehabilitation Specialist Todd Goldin worked with Maxwell to help him get to the point where he could join the workforce again, worked with him on his resume and helped prepare him for the job search and for his day at the job fair. 

But setting up the fair was no easy task.  Over the course of three to four months, Brumble and her staff, along with help from Stephanie Sims of Florida JobLink.com, contacted prospective employers from around the Tampa Bay area and invited them to the job fair.  About 15 accepted the invitation, all of which had job openings they were looking to fill.

Before the fair started, Vocational Rehab staff briefed the potential employers on ways they can work with injured Veterans and how to make accommodations for people with disabilities.   They also explained that businesses that hire a Veteran who works for them at least 90 days are eligible for a tax credit of up to $5,000.

While that may sound like an attractive proposition for some, most of the employers said they were there for other reasons.

“We want to make sure that we are able to help the community and other people around us seeing as how we’re based here,” said Busch Gardens representative Erica Gonzalez, who was looking to fill jobs ranging from sales clerks to maintenance workers for the theme park.  “We have a lot of Veterans around us so it would be great to have some more working with us.”

Mina Vulpis, who was at the fair recruiting for USAA, echoed that sentiment.

“We love to give opportunities to our Veterans,” Vulpis said.  “We not only hire Veterans, but spouses of Veterans.  We look at ways in which we can incorporate those values that military members have and bring them into our organization.”

For the Veterans who attended the fair, the opportunity to speak with prospective employers was the culmination of lots of preparation and help from the Vocational Rehab staff.

 “I appreciate that they’re putting this on,” Maxwell said.  “They usually do a good job with all the stuff they present, so I’m glad they’re giving Veterans this opportunity to showcase their abilities to do the job.”

The preparation was apparently worth it.  When the fair ended, five Veterans had been offered employment on the spot and another six were waiting to be scheduled for their formal job interviews.  Maxwell was one of those hired and is now getting ready to rejoin the workforce.