b'Jordan Caldwell says that the Veterans in Pip- Jordan Caldwelling program was the best decision he has ever made. It has set my family and me up for life, he added. Jordan was originally from San Diego, CA. After high school, he went to college for a year, but he soon realized that it was not the path for him. Jordan stated, My dad was in the military, so I decided to join up to give me time to see what I wanted to do. I was a heli-copter mechanic for seven years in the Army, deployed to Afghanistan, Germany, and the Philippines. Afghanistan was my most ex-tended combat deployment. My last station was at Fort Campbell in Kentucky, and it was there that I heard about the VIP program. I had completed a course in the Armymechatron-icsbut other than that, I did not have a lot of welding experience. I got into the program and learned to weld, and it was gratifying. My wife is from the area, so when it was time to pick where we wanted to settle, Plumbers and Pipe-fitters Local 43 in Chattanooga, TN, was a per-fect option. I love it here. I love fishing, and there is a lot of fishing. We have one child, and we are close to family. This job has presented me with a means to provide for my family, and I wanted something where my wife could quite work if she wished to, and we have excellent health insurance. I love working outside. Im never in the same place unless I want to be. Ive learned so much about this area just from moving around. Im a fourth-year apprentice, and the journeymen are so eager to help. ImopsCAREERwith a great company, ACME Industrial Piping,Career Opportunities in Piping for Transitioning Veterans Fall/Winter 2019and I feel fortunate. Im looking forward to having a lot of options in the future.'