The San Francisco-based organization that has championed the transition of many veterans from military to civilian life has just opened an office across the Bay in Oakland that will concentrate on job-training and assistance.
As described in an article in the San Francisco Chronicle,
“We’re finding that larger numbers of these vets are coming back not so much to San Francisco proper,” said Dave Lopez, director of the organization’s jobs program. “I would say the majority are coming back to the East Bay, at least the ones we’re seeing in the employment and training unit.”
The year ending last September saw an average of 23 vets a month seeking job help from the group, up from nine vets a month before that. In the last month, there were 39, Lopez said.
“Most of the ones we’re seeing are also younger aged,” Lopez said. The bulk of them are between 21 and 26, he said, and have limited job skills because they enlisted soon after leaving school.
The new Swords to Plowshares center opened earlier this month at 1433 Webster St. in downtown Oakland. The two staffers, Gulf War vet Ken Crawford and Vietnam War vet Eric Nichols, occupy a space amid a suite of offices housing other nonprofit organizations that can be partners, Lopez said.
Swords to Plowshares gets money from federal and state grants, as well as from private foundations, to pay for training. It also helps arrange for temporary housing and part time employment while the veterans are attending training courses, and helps with resumes and transportation to interviews.
The new Swords to Plowshares employment and training office can be reached at (510) 891-8773. The organization’s main office in San Francisco can be reached at (415) 252-4788.
For more info: swords-to-plowshares.org
