Welcome to another Support Series posting. I haven’t made one of these posts in bit here, but last week I had the pleasure of seeing my friend over at eMentors at one of the recent Hiring Our Heroes, hiring fairs. People need to know about eMentors, so they got bumped to the top of my list of support services to highlight. eMentor provides both a military spouse and veteran program, which I truly believe is so vital. With the growing number of military spouses powering forward in their careers with great determination, the eMentor program is one of the keys to thriving.
The Military Spouse eMentor Leadership Program welcomes mentors and protégés who are spouses or widow/ers of military members and veterans. We also invite representatives of military spouse-friendly firms to serve as corporate mentors to assist protégés seeking employment or with other career issues. The program puts military spouses in virtual touch with more experienced spouses and corporate and career mentors for guidance and support with challenges of all kinds and for assistance with finding meaningful employment with longevity and upward mobility.
Their program knows no bounds. If you’re in a field, they probably have a mentor for you. In my last conversation with them they had found a Micro-biologist with some crazy specialty that I had never heard of. A mentor is a valuable resource that I don’t think many think of. They have walked in your shoes, they’ve been there. If you factor in the added value of a fellow military spouse, who has faced the unique challenges that we have in our lives….well, then you’ve struck gold my friends.
Aside from the MilSpouse program, eMentor also has several other unique programs: Officer Women (Male officers can participate as mentors only), CadetMidnWomen (women officers, officer veterans and officers-in-training in all the services: U.S. Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard and Merchant Marines) and a Veterans program (a valuable resources for those seeking to transition from the military to civilian world).
The program is easy to particpate in, simply chose the program you’d like and click “join”. There you will complete an online profile so that you can be matched correctly. The relationships take place online mostly, but phone conversations and in-person meetings offer further support. Mentors and protegees will receive online newsletters, emails and periodic trainings to further support the relationship. There are also discussion forums available for further conversations with others enrolled in the program.
I really encourage anyone looking to further their careers, or begin anew to check out the eMentor program. Whether you are a teacher, a nurse, a micro-biologist or an entrepreneur; if you a Veteran looking to move forward in the civilian world, check out the eMentor program.
