We’ve mentioned VIPER before. The Veterans Industry Program for Employment Reintegration is a charity sponsored by S.O.Tech and it found itself center stage this last week at Los Angeles’ City Hall. LA was voting to become the largest city in the US to ban single use plastic bags. This is a move which was vehemently opposed by plastics industry lobbyists. One of their main counter arguments was that American plastics jobs would be lost. Interestingly, VIPER’s Vets were called to the microphone to talk about the jobs that have already been gained in their sewing program, Green Vets Los Angeles. GVLA is a program of the VIPER non-profit set up to sew reusable cloth shopping bags. Most of the work is accomplished at their facility right in the West Los Angeles Veterans Administration Hospital. VIPER Founder Jim Cragg said the program was originally set up for Vets to sew and assemble medical kits for troops going into harm’s way as a tool to help them feel that they were once again serving society, and that working on bags to save the environment was a logical move to help the vets continue to serve their community while rejoining the work force. The bags are assembled from recycled materials and have been a big hit across the LA area. In an environment that many would call liberal, Veterans have found a way to go back to work and make a difference by working in harmony with the local economy. Good on Green Vets LA and VIPER.
www.greenvetsla.org www.specopstech.com
