On Oct. 4, Work of Honor will host a Veteran & Military Spouse Network/Hiring Event at the Dystopian State Brewing Company in Tacoma. The event will allow veterans, military spouses and those transitioning from the military to meet and network in a relaxed environment with business professionals and company representatives seeking to hire. The keynote speaker for the night will be James M. Beck, a licensed agent at New York Life Insurance Company and military veteran.

Work of Honor is a community of veterans and business professionals committed to combining best in class, business and military operational strategies to create a strong economic community.

Lt. Col. Troy Ellis, I Corps, Joint Base Lewis-McChord, and a Work of Honor member, is looking forward to the event.

"I truly enjoyed the last networking event put on by Work of Honor," he said. "As a transitioning Army officer, I've come to realize it's harder than I thought networking and talking about myself, (and) this event helped me better in branding myself and feeling more comfortable in looking for my next career. I truly appreciate what Work of Honor is doing for us, especially for guys like me who have 22-plus years in the military because it's a whole different world out there outside the military and a whole new ball game."

"Work of Honor is run one hundred percent by veteran and military spouse employees," said Steven Shaw, Work of Honor founder. "Our mission is to shed light on the value that our veterans and military spouses bring to the civilian business community by combining their military and civilian skills, and we also offer career advancement services. We show the great value offered through our speaker series, video interviews, publishing of articles, network/hiring events, military spouse events and direct introductions to company partners."

It is free to sign up for Work of Honor on its website, which provides a wealth of information including an online magazine, a calendar of upcoming events and a career section that lists more than 3,000 jobs. Unlike most job search sites, Work of Honor evaluates each job and assigns it to categories that are relatable to military skills.

Work of Honor also hosts a signature monthly event.

"We start each monthly network/hiring event with a speaker who has achieved significant success within the business community based on the values, training and skills learned while in the military," Shaw said. "The sharing of this information is beneficial to our veterans, military spouses and business community in understanding the amazing expertise and talents being offered. After the speaker presentation, we give the company partners in attendance the opportunity to introduce themselves to the veterans and military spouse members. Networking commences after the company introductions, giving veterans and military spouses the opportunity to connect directly with business professionals seeking their great talent.  Work of Honor has over 650 company partners signed up, and about forty-five to fifty companies attend the networking events monthly."

If you are transitioning from the military or are a veteran who is job hunting, this event is worth checking out.  The company also holds a high value on the unique qualities that military spouses bring to the table, and Work of Honor welcomes them to this event.

Work of Honor Networking/Hiring Event, 6 p.m., Wednesday, Oct. 4, Dystopian State Brewing Company, 611 S. Baker St., Tacoma, free, workofhonor.com