Veteran S Support Network Inc

4 years ago I was introduced to homelessness in the veteran's community by a man who wanted to open a restaurant run by homeless vets, so they could learn the business.  Good thought, bad idea.  

So I thought, what if a homeless vet had the same 8 days of class, earning 9 certifications, as people I teach at the White House, Camp David, VP residence, Pentagon, Iraq, Afghanistan, Bahrain, Japan - all over the world since 2003.

Active military and vets use their GI Bill to pay for. the certifications  A $2000 program, which uses one month of their GI Bill.  What if I did that for FREE for homeless vets.

I started holding those classes in 2014 and have graduated about 15 homeless vets, using personal funds to pay for the tests and taking them to a graduation luncheon.  I would have done 100, but I taught those that were sent to me - now I want to put a major push on finding people who would prefer sitting in my classroom and changing their lives, rather than hanging out at the shelter.

My goal now is to take this program accross the country, to cities where I have a group of people who could help, people I know from my classes and from the association I ran for many years.  I can teach for free, but travel expenses and tests get expensive thus I need this help to take changing the lives of veterans to the next level.

For 9 tests, 3 lapel pins, 2 jacket patches, (I don't charge for my teaching), my flights, lodging and modest meals, the cost is $350 per student.  The tests alone cost $420, but I am going to pay those companies less as their contribution to the effort.

The certifications come from the National Restaurant Association, Prometric food safety, and the Global Foodservice Institute at the State University of New York, Morrisville Campus.

Two other programs the VSN supports are:

Tthe Military Culinary Competition, held now in Las Vegas, where teams of 4 vie for pirze money, ACF medals and more, in a mystery box competition.  Chef Robert Irvine is our celebrity chef.  Since 2003.

The Enlisted Aide of the Year award, also created in 2003, celebrates the hard work of the people who provide culinary and household support to the top Admirals and Generals in the military.  General George Casey and Mrs. Casey headed up the judging in 2016 and will again in 2017.  Held in DC in conjunction with the USO Salute to Military Chefs dinner.