My Name is Justin Callahan and I am a retired Army NCO and an AW2 Soldier. On January 15, 2004, I was wounded while conducting a patrol in Afghanistan. I lost my left leg as a result of a land mine, spent four short months at Walter Reed Army Medical Center then walked out of the hospital and continued to move forward.

During my rehabilitation at Walter Reed, I was very fortunate to meet a very successful business person and more importantly a true American Patriot by the name of John Bardis.  At the time I crossed paths with John, I had no clue what my plans where going to be after I left the Army.  John and I had become good friends and he assured me that I had a job waiting for me with his company as soon as I was ready to go to work.

I was retired from the Army in early September, and on September 15, 2004, I packed my bags and took a chance not knowing what was ahead in the civilian workforce. I drove from my home in Upstate New York all the way to Atlanta Georgia to pursue an opportunity with Mr. Bardis’ Company.  During the next few years only good things happened

The transition from the military into the civilian sector was a little awkward at first, but because I was surrounded by great people, I learned a lot and with the values and experiences that the Army had given me, I continued to excel and grow.  John Bardis had always spoken of his desire to continue to help other veterans that had been wounded and in January, 2007 he brought the concept of Hire Heroes USA to the table. The mission, to allow other wounded warriors and their spouses to have the same career opportunities that I was so fortunate to be given. In late June Hire Heroes USA www.hireheroesusa.org became fully operational.

Hire Heroes USA is a national nonprofit organization that provides career placement assistance to disabled veterans with a focus on returning OEF / OIF veterans and their spouses.  We do this through a personal approach working for the veteran to find and or create employment opportunities that are a good fit for not only the veteran, but for the employer as well.  This is about the veteran, and we want to make sure that the veteran not only just has a job, but a good one! There are so many extremely patriotic, successful business people out there in all industries that want to help provide these opportunities to the men and women that have served as well as their families, and we have partnered with the ones that will go the extra mile to make it happen!

If you are interested in learning more about Hire Heroes USA, please feel free to contact me at any time through email at jcallahan@hireheroesusa.org.

—Justin Callahan, Director of Veterans Relations, Hire Heroes USA