thedrifter
12-05-08, 08:15 AM
Press Release Source: Drexel Hamilton, LLC
Wall Street Warfighters Foundation Selects First Wounded Vets for Financial Career Training Program
Friday December 5, 8:00 am ET
PHILADELPHIA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Wall Street Warfighters Foundation, a nonprofit organization preparing disabled military veterans for financial services careers, has selected Marine Staff Sergeant John Jones and U.S. Army Master Sergeant George Holmes as the first students in Operation Wall Street, the Foundation’s intensive academic and vocational training program.
Jones and Holmes will take part in a six-month financial industry immersion program that will include assessment and career guidance, training programs hosted by Drexel Hamilton and other leading firms, academic preparation for securities licensing exams, and a formal internship, all culminating in full-time employment with a financial firm. The program covers all the veterans’ expenses: education, travel, training materials, room and board, securities exam courses to prepare for Series 7 and 63 certification, and a monthly stipend.
Sergeants Jones and Holmes have traveled a tough road to get here.
Jones had just 60 days left in his tour of duty in Iraq when his Humvee was hit by a double-stacked anti-tank mine. The blast sent Jones flying 25 feet into the air, and when his comrades couldn’t immediately find him afterwards, “they thought I’d been vaporized,” he recalls.
As he was medivacked out of Iraq, Jones gave his men the thumb’s up sign but had no idea what his future would hold. The athletic young husband and father with a successful 12-year career in the Marine Corps — who’d had day-to-day responsibility for 65 other Marines while in Iraq — ended up losing both his legs below the knees.
After a lengthy rehabilitation during which he adjusted to prosthetic limbs, Jones began working again, as chief of operations and logistics at a military base in San Antonio. He also provided marksmanship training for wounded servicemen and women, enabling them to shoot their weapons effectively with their new disabilities, and giving them a sense of empowerment.
Yet after a time, Jones wanted a career change and the ability to provide for his wife and three children, including a newborn son. However, despite his years of leadership experience, few avenues of work seemed open.
“It’s very hard for former military servicemen and women who’ve been disabled or injured to find employment because we’re viewed as under-qualified in most cases,” he says. “The fact is our knowledge and leadership is undervalued in the civilian market because we’re overqualified with our global experience, but lack necessary credentials for most jobs because we don’t have a certain piece of required paper.”
As a Master Sergeant in the Pennsylvania Army National Guard, Holmes was at a career crossroads when he returned from a tour of duty in Afghanistan. He was leading a 41-man infantry platoon during combat operations in Afghanistan when a rocket attack severely injured his arm and both legs. Two comrades standing next to him were killed instantly.
Shrapnel shredded Holmes’s body, severing his femoral artery. He suffered massive blood loss but used his hands to clamp down on the artery to save his own life. “For a few moments I thought, ‘I’m going to die on this floor, and bleed out the end of my life right here,” he recalls.
Additional injuries from the rocket included two shattered bones in his left arm, a collapsed lung and perforated eardrum.
Holmes didn’t have to be there that day. Already a veteran of Operation Desert Storm, he had a degree in international relations and a thriving career in the financial industry when the events of September 11, 2001 compelled him to contact his old National Guard unit. “I said, ‘I want to help my unit and my fellow soldiers as much as possible,’” he recalls.
Like Jones, Holmes’ severe injuries also left him contemplating his future. Returning home to his wife in Schuylkill Haven, Pennsylvania, “I didn’t know what my next step was going to be. I always wanted to get back into finance, but with the troubles facing the industry today, I was concerned there wouldn’t be an opportunity,” he says.
These two determined veterans anchor Wall Street Warfighters Foundation’s new program that will give disabled vets a second chance to be leaders — in an industry hungry for their skills. The Foundation was created by principals of Drexel Hamilton, LLC, an institutional broker-dealer and asset manager in Philadelphia founded by disabled Vietnam War veteran Lawrence Doll. Doll and his colleagues share a commitment to helping disabled vets assimilate back into civilian life and work. They foresaw opportunities to allow vets to excel in a work environment where their physical challenges are no limitation — and where their integrity and strength of character will inspire trust.
Next month, both veterans begin the six-month resident training program in Philadelphia that will place them in jobs at Drexel Hamilton and other financial firms volunteering to partner with the program. The program is designed to mentor disabled veterans and help them win financial security, professional satisfaction and personal independence. Leading the advisory board of the Wall Street Warfighters Foundation is former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and retired Marine General Peter Pace.
“During their military careers, Staff Sergeant Jones and Master Sergeant Holmes demonstrated every day that they are disciplined, loyal, responsible leaders who thrive under pressure,” says Pace. “Their integrity, strength and optimism are qualities that will greatly benefit Wall Street.”
Jones, who lives in Fort Collins, Colorado, is a national spokesperson for the Wounded Warrior Disabled Sports Project and was featured in the 2007 HBO documentary, Alive Day Memories: Home from Iraq.
“As military veterans, we’ve experienced international relations, finance and management in countries all over the world,” says Jones. We’re used to shouldering a tremendous amount of responsibility for both personnel and machinery. The Wall Street Warfighters Foundation is giving us the opportunity to transfer our skills and experience to an industry where we can have an immediate impact.”
About Wall Street Warfighters Foundation
Wall Street Warfighters Foundation, Inc., is a Pennsylvania nonprofit corporation. Operation Wall Street, the Foundation’s financial industry career training program, is open to all U.S. military veterans who have experienced physical or combat-stress related injuries while serving on active duty and who qualify for federal or state service-related disability benefits. We encourage eligible veterans to contact us through Drexel Hamilton’s website, www.drexelhamilton.com, to learn more about the program.
About Drexel Hamilton
Drexel Hamilton, LLC, is an institutional broker-dealer headquartered in Philadelphia and a member of NASDAQ OMX PHLX, CBSX, FINRA, and SIPC. The firm offers comprehensive trading and advisory services to its clients. The federal government has designated Drexel Hamilton a Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB), qualifying it for preferential consideration in federal contracting and subcontracting. Drexel Hamilton works to benefit the community of service-disabled veterans. Drexel Hamilton has a mandate to recruit, hire and train disabled veterans whenever possible.
Contact:
Drexel Hamilton, LLC
Brooks Hulitt, 215-988-9460
bhulitt@drexelhamilton.com
or
DeFazio Communications
Anthony J. DeFazio, 484-410-1354
tony@defaziocommunications.com
Source: Drexel Hamilton, LLC
Ellie
Wall Street Warfighters Foundation Selects First Wounded Vets for Financial Career Training Program
Friday December 5, 8:00 am ET
PHILADELPHIA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Wall Street Warfighters Foundation, a nonprofit organization preparing disabled military veterans for financial services careers, has selected Marine Staff Sergeant John Jones and U.S. Army Master Sergeant George Holmes as the first students in Operation Wall Street, the Foundation’s intensive academic and vocational training program.
Jones and Holmes will take part in a six-month financial industry immersion program that will include assessment and career guidance, training programs hosted by Drexel Hamilton and other leading firms, academic preparation for securities licensing exams, and a formal internship, all culminating in full-time employment with a financial firm. The program covers all the veterans’ expenses: education, travel, training materials, room and board, securities exam courses to prepare for Series 7 and 63 certification, and a monthly stipend.
Sergeants Jones and Holmes have traveled a tough road to get here.
Jones had just 60 days left in his tour of duty in Iraq when his Humvee was hit by a double-stacked anti-tank mine. The blast sent Jones flying 25 feet into the air, and when his comrades couldn’t immediately find him afterwards, “they thought I’d been vaporized,” he recalls.
As he was medivacked out of Iraq, Jones gave his men the thumb’s up sign but had no idea what his future would hold. The athletic young husband and father with a successful 12-year career in the Marine Corps — who’d had day-to-day responsibility for 65 other Marines while in Iraq — ended up losing both his legs below the knees.
After a lengthy rehabilitation during which he adjusted to prosthetic limbs, Jones began working again, as chief of operations and logistics at a military base in San Antonio. He also provided marksmanship training for wounded servicemen and women, enabling them to shoot their weapons effectively with their new disabilities, and giving them a sense of empowerment.
Yet after a time, Jones wanted a career change and the ability to provide for his wife and three children, including a newborn son. However, despite his years of leadership experience, few avenues of work seemed open.
“It’s very hard for former military servicemen and women who’ve been disabled or injured to find employment because we’re viewed as under-qualified in most cases,” he says. “The fact is our knowledge and leadership is undervalued in the civilian market because we’re overqualified with our global experience, but lack necessary credentials for most jobs because we don’t have a certain piece of required paper.”
As a Master Sergeant in the Pennsylvania Army National Guard, Holmes was at a career crossroads when he returned from a tour of duty in Afghanistan. He was leading a 41-man infantry platoon during combat operations in Afghanistan when a rocket attack severely injured his arm and both legs. Two comrades standing next to him were killed instantly.
Shrapnel shredded Holmes’s body, severing his femoral artery. He suffered massive blood loss but used his hands to clamp down on the artery to save his own life. “For a few moments I thought, ‘I’m going to die on this floor, and bleed out the end of my life right here,” he recalls.
Additional injuries from the rocket included two shattered bones in his left arm, a collapsed lung and perforated eardrum.
Holmes didn’t have to be there that day. Already a veteran of Operation Desert Storm, he had a degree in international relations and a thriving career in the financial industry when the events of September 11, 2001 compelled him to contact his old National Guard unit. “I said, ‘I want to help my unit and my fellow soldiers as much as possible,’” he recalls.
Like Jones, Holmes’ severe injuries also left him contemplating his future. Returning home to his wife in Schuylkill Haven, Pennsylvania, “I didn’t know what my next step was going to be. I always wanted to get back into finance, but with the troubles facing the industry today, I was concerned there wouldn’t be an opportunity,” he says.
These two determined veterans anchor Wall Street Warfighters Foundation’s new program that will give disabled vets a second chance to be leaders — in an industry hungry for their skills. The Foundation was created by principals of Drexel Hamilton, LLC, an institutional broker-dealer and asset manager in Philadelphia founded by disabled Vietnam War veteran Lawrence Doll. Doll and his colleagues share a commitment to helping disabled vets assimilate back into civilian life and work. They foresaw opportunities to allow vets to excel in a work environment where their physical challenges are no limitation — and where their integrity and strength of character will inspire trust.
Next month, both veterans begin the six-month resident training program in Philadelphia that will place them in jobs at Drexel Hamilton and other financial firms volunteering to partner with the program. The program is designed to mentor disabled veterans and help them win financial security, professional satisfaction and personal independence. Leading the advisory board of the Wall Street Warfighters Foundation is former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and retired Marine General Peter Pace.
“During their military careers, Staff Sergeant Jones and Master Sergeant Holmes demonstrated every day that they are disciplined, loyal, responsible leaders who thrive under pressure,” says Pace. “Their integrity, strength and optimism are qualities that will greatly benefit Wall Street.”
Jones, who lives in Fort Collins, Colorado, is a national spokesperson for the Wounded Warrior Disabled Sports Project and was featured in the 2007 HBO documentary, Alive Day Memories: Home from Iraq.
“As military veterans, we’ve experienced international relations, finance and management in countries all over the world,” says Jones. We’re used to shouldering a tremendous amount of responsibility for both personnel and machinery. The Wall Street Warfighters Foundation is giving us the opportunity to transfer our skills and experience to an industry where we can have an immediate impact.”
About Wall Street Warfighters Foundation
Wall Street Warfighters Foundation, Inc., is a Pennsylvania nonprofit corporation. Operation Wall Street, the Foundation’s financial industry career training program, is open to all U.S. military veterans who have experienced physical or combat-stress related injuries while serving on active duty and who qualify for federal or state service-related disability benefits. We encourage eligible veterans to contact us through Drexel Hamilton’s website, www.drexelhamilton.com, to learn more about the program.
About Drexel Hamilton
Drexel Hamilton, LLC, is an institutional broker-dealer headquartered in Philadelphia and a member of NASDAQ OMX PHLX, CBSX, FINRA, and SIPC. The firm offers comprehensive trading and advisory services to its clients. The federal government has designated Drexel Hamilton a Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB), qualifying it for preferential consideration in federal contracting and subcontracting. Drexel Hamilton works to benefit the community of service-disabled veterans. Drexel Hamilton has a mandate to recruit, hire and train disabled veterans whenever possible.
Contact:
Drexel Hamilton, LLC
Brooks Hulitt, 215-988-9460
bhulitt@drexelhamilton.com
or
DeFazio Communications
Anthony J. DeFazio, 484-410-1354
tony@defaziocommunications.com
Source: Drexel Hamilton, LLC
Ellie