Sammamish's Marjorie James Helps put Veterans to Work

When the man who was to become Marjorie James’ son-in-law went looking for work about 10 years ago, the former Army Ranger had a difficult time getting a job. So James, an executive with Volt Workplace Solutions, stepped in and helped the veteran get a job at what was at the time still Washington Mutual. 

Before long, James’ soon to be son-in-law was managing a whole team of loan processors. Seeing what the veteran could do was an eye-opener for her. “It just really woke me up,” James, a Sammamish resident, said.

James, whose father had fought in World War II, decided then that she was going to do whatever she could to help vets find jobs. She reached out to friends in the corporate world, including James Collins, a retired Major General, and formed “Hire America’s Heroes” in 2007.

“Hire America’s Heroes,” James said, is based on the belief that veterans have incredibly valuable skills and experiences that corporate America could benefit greatly from if given the chance. “We in the corporate world are really missing the boat if we don’t hire these people,” she said.

James has pulled multiple corporations together and gotten them all to commit to hiring veterans. She counts Starbucks, Microsoft, Weyerhaeuser, Amazon, Alaska Airlines, Allied Waste, Boeing, Comcast IBM, Puget Sound Energy and the Port of Seattle among her allies.

“We realized as a group that we were not doing the best job that we could,” James said.

“Hire America’s Heroes” reaches out to veterans with dedicated career fairs and symposiums, all aimed at putting vets and employers together.

James estimates that the organization has helped hundreds of vets over the past few years, something she feels privileged and honored to have done. “It’s absolutely a passion,” she said.

The Sammamish-based organization is about to hold one of its biggest events with a career day at Tacoma’s Cheney Stadium on Sept. 2. Over 500 veterans have already signed up to attend, while companies such as Boeing, Microsoft and Amazon will be there to help put them to work.

“It’s going to be huge,” James said.