ECC to host Veteran Resource and Job Fair Oct. 17

On Wednesday, Oct. 17, veterans, their family members, students and community members in need of support services and employment assistance are invited to Elgin Community College for the annual Veteran Resource and Job Fair from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. It will be held in the Building B Jobe Lounge, 1700 Spartan Drive, Elgin.

The event, which is free and open to the public, serves Cook, DuPage and Kane counties.

It will feature 25 veteran-friendly employers from the state of Illinois, federal agencies, local government and veteran-owned companies. Representatives from various legal services, county agencies, senior and homeless services, and education will be on hand to assist veterans with their needs.

Two Department of Veteran Affairs Mobile Vet Centers will be on site in the parking lot directly across from the Building J Events Center.

Illinois Secretary of State employees will be in attendance as veterans will be able to get their Illinois driver's license or State ID updated to show "veterans" status on them.

The Mobile Vet Centers are two of 50 units that travel nationwide and provide readjustment counseling services for veterans who served in combat and their families. They are equipped with a satellite dish that connects to communications and audiovisual equipment, six phone lines, a fax line, notebook computers, four encrypted computer lines and Wi-Fi gear.

Two dividers separate the motor coach into private counseling rooms. All services are free and strictly confidential.

The event is sponsored by Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES), Veterans Assistance Commission of the Kane County Office of Community Reinvestment/Workforce Development Division, and ECC's Dean of Student Services and Veteran Services Office.

For more information, contact Anitra King, ECC veterans' coordinator, at (847) 214-7531. Visit elgin.edu/veterans for a list of resources available to veterans.