Last week I had the honor of attending the Inc 500/5000 Conference for entrepreneurs alongside several other Tillman Military Scholars and Pat Tillman Foundation staff, as a member of the Inc./Joining Forces Military Entrepreneurs Program special delegation.

I started my business Patriot Commercial Cleaning in 2011 and we have contracts all over St. Louis, MO. Our mission is to clean commercial office spaces for health and appearance. We hire veterans on our staff and I show them how to navigate different programs so they are aware of the benefits they earned while in the military. They can clean at night and have the opportunity to attend school during the day.

(L to R) Tim Smith, Rick Schumacher, Lindsay Compton, Brett Gibson, Roel Mora

This opportunity turned out to be both an eye opening and empowering experience. Over the weekend, we had the opportunity to speak with business owners who have years of experience and knowledge. Dozens of entrepreneurs took time out of their schedules to meet one-on-one with us. The support we got from people attending the conference was unbelievable and it was very positive.  It seemed like people really wanted the veteran community to thrive and support our new ventures. This is merely a start to the success of veteran-owned businesses, like my own.

From Inc. Magazine: “The Inc./Joining Forces Military Entrepreneurs Program will help veterans, servicemembers and their families start, run and grow their own business through mentoring, education, networking, resources and information provided through Inc.’s special events, business conferences, and www.Inc.com/militaryentrepreneurs.”