(Columbus, Ohio) It has been a little more than a month since announcing the creation of the Veterans Affairs Committee for Columbus City Council and already the chair of the committee, Councilmember Hearcel F. Craig, is proposing a significant change to the Columbus City Code that will assist veteran-owned businesses compete for city contracts.  Craig, a Vietnam era U.S. Army veteran himself, says the legislation will add veteran-owned businesses to those enterprises certified and tracked by the Equal Business Opportunity Commission Office (EBOCO).

The change, announced at the annual Veteran’s Stand Down event held at Veteran’s Memorial, will allow those businesses to better compete for city contracts in the same manner as minority or female owned businesses currently participate in the bid process.   The change also provides veteran-owned businesses with bid counseling and start-up assistance from EBOCO.

“By increasing our services for veteran-owned businesses, the City of Columbus once again is demonstrating its commitment to helping those who protected the very freedoms we enjoy as Americans,” said Craig.   “This is a business friendly initiative that will help position these firms to expand their opportunities to do work for the city.”

Craig has also committed to exploring the feasibility of awarding credits against cost for bids submitted by certified veteran-owned businesses.  This policy would mirror existing credits for local workforce and local businesses.

Columbus City Council recently passed ordinance 1325-2011, legislation that extends for another year military leave with pay to City employees currently serving on active duty, including the health and life insurance benefits for their family members.  City Council also supports the Mayor’s Veterans Advisory Committee and takes part in numerous activities thought the year supporting our servicemen and women.

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This is a public service announcement (PSA) brought to you by Veteran Owned Business.   Veteran Owned Business is in no way affiliated with the above organization(s). We do not in any way endorse the above business/organization or guarantee the above offer.  VeteranOwnedBusiness.com and the Veteran Owned Business Directory are simply providing information we feel is of interest to veterans, active duty military, reservists, service disabled veterans, veteran owned businesses, service disabled veteran owned businesses, families of veterans, families of our armed forces and any other person or persons directly or indirectly involved with the United States military.

If your business is (or you know of another business) owned by a veteran (VOB), active duty military, reservist or service disabled  veteran (SDVOSB) of the United States, Army, Air Force, Marines, Navy, Coast Guard or National Guard, please be sure to visit the VeteranOwnedBusiness.com sign up page to get your free listing.

The objective of our FREE Veteran Owned Business Directory is to continue to offer a growing list of products and services that are unique in the fact that they are all owned by, sold by and/or serviced by past and present military members.

The President issues a proclamation commemorating the observances and reminding the nation of those Americans who have sacrificed so much for their country.

Observances of National POW/MIA Recognition Day are held across the country on military installations, ships at sea, state capitols, schools and veterans’ facilities. It is traditionally observed on the third Friday in September each year. This observance is one of six days throughout the year that Congress has mandated the flying of the National League of Families’ POW/MIA flag. The others are Armed Forces Day, Memorial Day, Flag Day, Independence Day and Veterans Day.

The flag is to be flown at major military installations, national cemeteries, all post offices, VA medical facilities, the World War II Memorial, Korean War Veterans Memorial, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, the official offices of the secretaries of state, defense and veterans affairs, the director of the selective service system and the White House.

A Pentagon ceremony for National POW/MIA Recognition Day was held on Friday, Sept.18, 2009. This ceremony featured troops from each of the military services.

• Presidential Proclamation for 2010 POW/MIA Recognition Day
• History of the POW/MIA Flag

2011 Poster View: (Large | Hi-Res)

POW/MIA Posters for Prior Years

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The Columbus Crew of Major League Soccer has partnered with Veteran Owned Business to announce their Third Annual Military Appreciation Night: Red, White & Crew!

Sunday, June 26th at 8:00PM vs the MLS Cup Reigning Champions, Colorado Rapids.

Join the Columbus Crew in Celebrating the men and women of our Armed Forces. Many fun activities are planned for the entire family.

As a special thank you, the Columbus Crew are offering a FREE ticket to all service men and women, Active Duty or Veteran.  Military Family members can purchase a special discounted ticket for $20 (regular price $32.) To Order tickets, visit thecrew.com/militarynight. Deadline to order free and discounted tickets: June 23rd at 5pm.

• Pre-Game Military Themed Plaza with contests, activities and prizes
• POW/MIA Moment of Silence
• Coin Flip featuring a member of the Military
• Presentation of our National Colors
• Post-Game Fireworks Display
• and Much More

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If your business is (or you know of another business) owned by a veteran (VOB), active duty military, reservist or service disabled veteran (SDVOSB) of the United States, Army, Air Force, Marines, Navy, Coast Guard or National Guard, please be sure to visit the VeteranOwnedBusiness.com sign up page to get your free listing.

The objective of our FREE Veteran Owned Business Directory is to continue to offer a growing list of products and services that are unique in the fact that they are all owned by, sold by and/or serviced by past and present military members.

The following approved sub-categories have been suggested by one or more of our over 5,000 Veteran Owned Business Directory members:

1. Construction Equipment Manufacturing (under the Manufacturing category).
2. Survival Training (under the Education and Training main category).
3. Bar Code Scanner Sales (under Communications Equipment in the main category: Stores, Dealers and Products).
4. Residential Energy / Auditing Services (under Home and Garden).
5. Energy Auditing Services (under Energy and Utilities).

If your business is (or you know of another business) owned by a veteran (VOB), active duty military, reservist or service disabled veteran (SDVOSB) of the United States, Army, Air Force, Marines, Navy, Coast Guard or National Guard, please be sure to visit the VeteranOwnedBusiness.com sign up page to get your free listing.

The objective of our FREE Veteran Owned Business Directory is to continue to offer a growing list of products and services that are unique in the fact that they are all owned by, sold by and/or serviced by past and present military members.

Thank You,

Project Services Department
VeteranOwnedBusiness.com

Included in the Aviation Services sub section are additional sub categories including:
Aviation Engineering Services
Aviation Maintenance Services
Aviation Logistics Services

If you are the owner of an Aviation Services company and are a current or past member of the United States armed forces, please be sure to visit the VeteranOwnedBusiness.com sign up page to get your free listing.

The objective of the VeteranOwnedBusiness.com Directory is to offer a growing list of Aviation Services businesses owned by veterans, active duty military, reservist and/or service disabled veterans of the United States Army, Air Force, Marines, Navy, Coast Guard and National Guard.

Thank You,

Project Services Department
VeteranOwnedBusiness.com

True from the very first day we launched VeteranOwnedBusiness.com… there is still absolutely no cost to list a business and there is absolutely no cost to search for a business!  We have received numerous phone calls (some days more than 200 calls in a day) and thousands of emails of praise from proud Americans from all over the world thanking us and letting us know they’ve used VeteranOwnedBusiness.com to find a business.  We’ve also received a ton of calls and emails from businesses listed letting us know how much they appreciate their membership and how their free listing has helped them bring in business–and for many–help keep their doors open during these very trying economic times.

Other notable achievements:

• Nearly 7 million (7,000,000) pages viewed since going live on Veteran’s Day 2008
• Nearly 6 hundred thousand (600,000) visitors since going live
• Have nearly 200 profiles of non profits who directly help veterans, active duty military and their respective families
• Have received several testimonials (some on company letterhead) from members who told us their business profile has brought in at least one customer/client.

Our entire staff continues to work hard to further the development of VeteranOwnedBusiness.com.  We have many new features and functionalities planned for release in the 2nd half of 2010.  One of our biggest goals is to continue to grow our veteran owned business directory by reaching our goal of 5,000 businesses profiled by the end of 2010.   Having added over 500 new, free members in a little over a month puts us far ahead of this goal of reaching 5,000 by year’s end.

We know we have miles to go as far as having some of the development work done; however, our goal all along has been to create a comprehensive, user friendly place for procurement people, prime contractors, fellow veteran owned businesses and of course the every day consumer to go to easily find and conduct business with businesses owned by our country’s military heroes!  Because this number has grown so rapidly, we have actually had to spend more time on the sign up area than other areas.  Please be patient as we continue to work toward an even more comprehensive directory.

Please be sure to help us spread the word about VeteranOwnedBusiness.com by sharing it with everyone you know. You can simply email the link or you can visit our badge page and download a banner or badge for use on your site.  You can also become a Fan on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/veteranownedbusiness and Follow us on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/veteranowned.

Thank you for your continued support!

VOB Development Team
VeteranOwnedBusiness.com
Owned and Operated by U.S. Military Veterans
(877) VOB-List

The Retired Enlisted Association Details: Premier source of grassroots lobbying, legislative and health care information for active duty military and retired enlisted personnel.

Are you with a non profit organization?  If you are, be sure to get your organization’s free listing in the Veteran Owned Business Directory: http://www.veteranownedbusiness.com/signup.php?plan=4.

Mom 4R Marines Details: Providing Support to active duty Marines and their families both in Iraq and Afghanistan. As well as helping Wounded Warriors on the home front. Building memorials to the fallen.

Mom 4R Marines is a wonderful organization.  We highly recommend you take a few minutes and visit Mom 4R Marines’ website to find out about their wonderful program!

Are you with a non profit organization?  If you are, be sure to get your organization’s free listing in the Veteran Owned Business Directory: http://www.veteranownedbusiness.com/signup.php?plan=4.

True from the very first day we launched VeteranOwnedBusiness.com… there is still absolutely no cost to list a business and there is absolutely no cost to search for a business!  We have received numerous phone calls (some days more than 100 calls in a day) and thousands of emails of praise from proud Americans from all over the world thanking us and letting us know they’ve used VeteranOwnedBusiness.com to find a business.  We’ve also received a ton of calls and emails from businesses listed letting us know how much they appreciate their membership and how their free listing has helped them bring in business–and for many–help keep their doors open during these very trying economic times.

Other notable achievements:

• Nearly 6 million (6,000,000) pages viewed since going live on Veteran’s Day 2008
• Over half a million (500,000) visitors since going live
• Have nearly 200 profiles of non profits who directly help veterans, active duty military and their respective families

Our entire staff continues to work hard (practically around the clock) to further the development of VeteranOwnedBusiness.com.  We have many new features and functionalities planned for release in 2010.  One of our biggest goals is to continue to grow our veteran owned business directory by reaching our goal of 5,000 businesses profiled by the end of 2010.  We know we have miles to go as far as having some of the development work done; however, our goal all along has been to create a comprehensive, user friendly place for procurement people, prime contractors, fellow veteran owned businesses and of course the every day consumer to go to easily find and conduct business with businesses owned by our country’s military heroes!  Because this number has grown so rapidly, we have actually had to spend more time on the sign up area than other areas.  Please be patient as we continue to work toward an even more comprehensive directory.

Please be sure to help us spread the word about VeteranOwnedBusiness.com by sharing it with everyone you know. You can simply email the link or you can visit our badge page and download a banner or badge for use on your site.

Thank You!

VOB Development Team
VeteranOwnedBusiness.com
Owned and Operated by U.S. Military Veterans
(877) VOB-List

Vet Like Me

Vet Like Me is a bi-monthly newsletter written by and for service-disabled veteran owned Businesses (SDVOB). We gather news and information from the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Small Business Administration, the Senate and House Committees on small business and many veterans service organizations nationwide.  Also featured are updates and announcements regarding OSDBU conferences, special events and important notices. If interested, join our mailing list at bluepoint1@comcast.net.  In the subject line enter “add to mailing list.”

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VeteranOwnedBusiness.com and the Veteran Owned Business Directory are in no way affiliated with the above business or organization.  We do not in any way endorse the above business or guarantee the above offer.  Please address any questions to the aforementioned business for more information about their program.  VeteranOwnedBusiness.com and the Veteran Owned Business Directory are simply providing information we feel is of interest to veterans, active duty military, reservists, service disabled veterans, veteran owned businesses, service disabled veteran owned businesses, families of veterans, families of our armed forces and any other person or persons directly or indirectly involved with the United States military.