Contact:
Tom Evenson
(608) 266-2839

Madison – Governor Scott Walker joined Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs (WDVA) Secretary Dan Zimmerman today in announcing $400,000 in grants to non-profit organizations that provide entrepreneurship training, technical, business, or other assistance to veteran entrepreneurs to improve employment outcomes.
 
“The brave men and women who choose to serve in the United States Armed Forces deserve our full support and assistance when they return home and begin to transition back to civilian life,” Governor Walker said. “The experience our veterans receive serving in the military provide them with unique skills and expertise that not only benefit potential employers but also make them savvy business owners. For their sacrifice and service, our veterans deserve every opportunity to pursue their dreams. These grants allow non-profits to help make Wisconsin veterans’ dreams of business ownership a reality, which ultimately enhances our communities and our state as a whole.”
 
“Veterans, having been trained in the military, already have many of the essential skills and intangibles that make a good business owner,” Secretary Zimmerman added. “By partnering with these non-profits and providing them grants to help veterans succeed in entrepreneurship, we are not only helping that veteran, but we are creating jobs and improving the employment situation in our state.”
 
Grant recipients include:
 
  • Bunker Labs, Madison$238,556 to provide training to veteran entrepreneurs through the Innovator Academy, which helps an entrepreneur develop the talents and skills required to start and grow their business.
  • Fox Valley Technical College Foundation, Appleton$36,520 to commence a pilot project, E-seed Entrepreneurial Training: Veterans Edition (ENVoy). The pilot will help ten veterans start or expand their own business.
  • Legal Action of Wisconsin, Milwaukee$90,000 to provide business, technical, and employment legal services such as reviewing contracts to veteran entrepreneurs in southern Wisconsin.
  • Michelangelo’s Workshop, Middleton$4,925 to teach unemployed and underemployed veterans the artistic skills, carving processes, and business strategies necessary for ownership or employment in stone sculpting business.
  • Project Echelon, Waukesha$4,999 to help veterans apply their skills and leadership qualities in the workplace, take steps towards entrepreneurship, or engage in their journey of healing in order to regroup, recover, and re-engage through physical activity and self-discovery.
  • UW-Milwaukee Veterans Upward Bound, Milwaukee$25,000 to implement a pilot Veteran Entrepreneurship Readiness and Support program that will provide business skills assessment, educational workshops, instructional support services, field experience, and business mentoring.
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