LAFAYETTE, Ind. — It was one of her husband’s dying wishes that she work to help veterans, Melissa Jarboe said. In the last hours of his life she promised to honor that wish.
Jarboe is the widow of Army Staff Sargent Jamie Jarboe, a native of Frankfort, who after sustaining serious injuries in Afghanistan in 2011 held on for nearly a year before his death in March of 2012. She is also the founder and CEO of the Military Veteran Project, a non-profit that assists veterans with their reintegration into society and is fundraising to study and treat Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.
It was her commitment to her husband that led Jarboe to found the Military Veteran Project and the same promise that brought her to Lafayette’s Alorica branch on Thursday morning to make an announcement.
Alorica and the Military Veteran Project will be partnering to raise funds for a $7 million study that more closely examines the effects and underlying causes of PTSD. Jarboe also hopes to treat 1,000 veterans by 2018.
Alorica, an outsourced communications center, will allow employees to come in on Sundays or donate other time during the week to make fundraising calls for the charity.
This is the first Alorica branch to partner with the charity. Communications director Ken Muche said the project demonstrates Alorica’s commitment to its community and to veterans.
This partnership is not the only way Alorica seeks to help veterans. The company works to provide a welcoming environment and flexible work schedule for veterans. More than 15 veterans currently work at Alorica Lafayette, according to senior site director Tammy Holcomb..
Michael Ramsey served in the army for three years, and has been an employee of Alorica for the past several months. He said the greatest challenge of reintegrating into civilian life was finding a job that suited his narrow skill set.
“I really didn’t see a whole lot of career opportunities,” Ramsey said. “I was an artillery radar operator and in the civilian world there is not a lot of crossover. Working here they’ve given me a chance to grow and expand my knowledge and they give me a chance to help people.”
In addition to partnering with Jarboe’s project, Alorica will add 175 jobs by the end of the year. Veterans are encouraged to apply.
West Lafayette Mayor John Dennis spoke about the integrity and commitment veterans bring to any job, something he noticed during his previous work with the Lafayette Police Department.
“If we hired a veteran we had an employee who knew when to show up, understood the employer-employee relationship, that understood self-respect. … Their level of commitment to their employer is only second to their family,” Dennis said.
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