Billy:
When I was initially injured there was a sense of hopelessness. I was not only injured physically, I was also injured mentally and financially. So when you add all three of those together, I mean, it's a big hit. It makes you humble. 

Basically everything I learned was combat. To come off that type of height where you're combat Marine Corps, I actually carried the flag for my company. We're talking about 130 marines. The toughest marine carries the flag for my company, and I was that guy. So being the kind of go-to guy or the captain when everything needed to get done or you needed to kick some butt to get the guys, my comrades, rolling, I was that type of guy. So, you know, it was definitely a real downer to come to that and, you know, dependent on the check every month.

But I remember my very first interview, it was raining. It was pouring down raining, it was raining so hard, and I woke up and I said, "Oh, man, I'm just not up to it." It's raining and, you know, the average person stayed in the house, but I put my suit on and I went to the job fair. And I remember meeting a lady.She was an EEO specialist at the Naval Research Lab. Her name was Debbie Irwin. I was soaking wet. When you're sitting down in a rainstorm  and you get soaked all the way down through to your underwear, basically, and I--my résumés are wet. I came into the job fair, and I just looked at her and I gave her my resume. It was really wet, and she looked at me and I looked at her, and she saw that I was hungry. I mean, I was just dying for an opportunity. Someone please give me a chance. And before I knew it, that was my first job. I've known people with disabilities, I mean, we're talking long suffering, that have been--we're talking 10, 15 years, you know, looking for a job. 
 Can you imagine what it's like to spend 10 or 15 years looking for a job? It's really--it really happens. And we need programs like Ticket to Work to provide that support and to help people move on. And it's a win-win situation with the employers, employment networks, and beneficiaries. If everyone participates, it's a win-win situation for everyone. 

Well, what I would say to a disabled veteran about the Ticket to Work program is that it's a program that does work, providing that you connect with the right employment network that's gonna provide the proper training and the support that you need to transition back in. You really stand a good shot. And definitely I think it's something that you ought to go for. And that's what I would tell a service member. And God bless you.