About the Author:
Gretchen Martens is a visionary social entrepreneur. She is the founder and CEO of the Center for Veteran and Community Progress, launching in January 2014, which provides education and training nationally to city/county managers struggling to help their military coming home. Gretchen is known as an engaging keynote speaker, media guest, writer, trainer, and educator. She has worked with corporations, nonprofits, associations, local government, and small business owners. She has trained more than 250 small businesses on Veteran hiring and spoken to more than 10,000 people on Veterans issues. She has done numerous radio interviews and written for diverse associations. In 2006, Gretchen, a professionally trained coach, founded Homeward Deployed, which provides transition coaching to Veterans, Guard, Reserve, and military families. She has designed workforce training programs for the National Guard. Veteran Studies Weekly, an elementary school curriculum to bridge the civilian-military divide, launches on Presidents Day 2014. Gretchen is working with the City of Tyler, Texas, to craft a Veteran/Military strategic plan which better coordinates service organizations and creates Veteran-focused economic growth strategies in alignment with the city’s industry growth initiative. She is collaborating with the Forte Institute on a multi-year service member resilience research project. In previous lives, Gretchen has worked with resilience programs for at risk youth and families, immigrant business owners, and people with disabilities. She has 12 professional publications in higher and adult continuing education; she has conducted more than 4000 hours of teaching, training, and speaking. When Gretchen is not preoccupied with social change, she enjoys watching her two children zoom into adulthood: Caitlin is a third year law student at Harvard, working towards a career in public interest law; Dylan is a junior at Virginia Commonwealth University, working towards a career as a graphic designer (most recently designing the covers and interiors for his mom’s books). Gretchen she enjoys abstract painting and has recently begun participating in art shows. She is an avid reader, cook, blues enthusiast, photographer, student of improv theater, and hiker. She writes poetry and fiction. She is exceedingly mediocre at salsa dancing, kickboxing, yoga, tai chi, and meditation.
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