Mission Oriented

Todd Connor, is a Navy Veteran, small business owner and cofounder of Veterans for Political Innovation. Todd has a passion for entrepreneurs, especially veterans. He founded Bunker Labs in 2014. Bunker Labs helps veteran entrepreneurs start and grow their businesses. Along with his passion for entrepreneurs he desires political reform and knows veterans are primed to lead the charge. Veterans for Political Innovation Todd has a passion to help change the political playing field. He found most people are dissatisfied with the current political system but are unsure of the solution. His experience as a business owner and veteran has given him a unique perspective on the two party system. A solution he found, states should go to a "final five" voting system and much of the current frustrations would be eliminated. He is looking to his fellow veterans to help spark this political innovation. With over half of veterans registered as Independents, most miss out on voting in a primary. The "final five" voting system would remedy this problem. Veterans for Political Innovation's mission is to "make our political system less toxic and more competitive by mobilizing military veterans to fight to preserve democracy through election innovations." Learn More Website: www.veteransforpoliticalinnovation.org Todd's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/toddconnor/ Book Recommendation: The Politics Industry VeteranCrowd Network Our "forever promise" is to build the veteran and military spouse community a place to connect and engage. VeteranCrowd is simply a national network of veterans, veteran led businesses and the resources they need to prosper. Subscribe to stay in touch. About Your Host Bob Louthan is a VMI Graduate, Army veteran, and executive with over 25 years of experience in mergers, acquisitions and private capital formation. He founded the VeteranCrowd Network to bring veterans and veteran-led businesses together with each other and the resources they need to prosper.

Mike Cantwell is a United States Naval Academy graduate. After serving in the Navy, he has continued his career of service as a federal government employee at the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. It was the presidential elections of 2016 that led Mike to dive into politics and ultimately begin his journey as a political reformist. He knows that our political system is broken and the way to fix it is at the state level. Two key components he feels are vital; Rank Choice Voting and Final Five Voting. These issues are multi-partisan and can help create better elections across the whole system. Mike has been involved with Fair Vote Virginia and also Veterans for Political Innovation. Both these organizations have a passion for political reform at the grassroots level. Fair Vote Virginia "We're a single issue, local chapter of the national FairVote movement, a non-partisan, non-profit champion of ranked choice voting. Our members cover the entire political spectrum and come together from across the Commonwealth, united by a shared mission to revive real, representative democracy." Veterans for Political Innovation Their mission is to "make our political system less toxic and more competitive by mobilizing military veterans to fight to preserve democracy through election innovations. Learn More LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/michael-cantwell-9bb5282/ Fair Vote Virginia: www.fairvoitvirginia.org Veterans for Political Innovation: www.veteransforpoliticalinnovation.org VeteranCrowd Network Our "forever promise" is to build the veteran and military spouse community a place to connect and engage. VeteranCrowd is simply a national network of veterans, veteran led businesses and the resources they need to prosper. Subscribe to stay in touch. About Your Host Bob Louthan is a VMI Graduate, Army veteran, and executive with over 25 years of experience in mergers, acquisitions and private capital formation. He founded the VeteranCrowd Network to bring veterans and veteran-led businesses together with each other and the resources they need to prosper.

Eric graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 1997. He served eight years as a Naval Flight Officer. After service he practiced law and had a successful real estate business. In early 2019 Eric served as board president for "Show Me Integrity", a political reform organization. It was this experience and his own desire to get involved in politics as an independent that led his desire to find a platform for nonpartisan reform. He founded the nonprofit, Veterans for Political Innovation in 2021 to start this work. Veterans for Political Innovation Their mission is to "make our political system less toxic and more competitive by mobilizing military veterans to fight to preserve democracy through election innovations." To accomplish this, VPI is focused on supporting the following nonpartisan innovations: Top Five Open Primaries, Ranked Choice Voting, and Final Five Voting. "Veterans for Political Innovation will mobilize one of America's most trusted institutions, veterans, to help restore one of our least-trusted institutions, the politics industry." Learn More Website: https://www.v-pi.org Upcoming Events: Wisconsin Veterans Business Conference VeteranCrowd Network Our "forever promise" is to build the veteran and military spouse community a place to connect and engage. VeteranCrowd is simply a national network of veterans, veteran led businesses and the resources they need to prosper. Subscribe to stay in touch. About Your Host Bob Louthan is a VMI Graduate, Army veteran, and executive with over 25 years of experience in mergers, acquisitions and private capital formation. He founded the VeteranCrowd Network to bring veterans and veteran-led businesses together with each other and the resources they need to prosper.

Monica Fullerton - Creating an Online Market Place for Military & First Responder Families Monica Fullerton got her Masters and planned to pursue a job as a news anchor, but as an Air Force spouse that was not an easy career path to navigate. Instead Monica found work with a logistics company. It provided the ground work for her entrepreneurial journey. Monica has had an entrepreneurial spirit her whole life, but was waiting for the right business idea that provided purpose. She had an epiphany while riding in a car with some fellow spouses about the amount of talent spouses have to offer from things they make to the services they provide. Unfortunately military spouses are often underemployed or can't find employment due to the military lifestyle. With that motivation, Spouse-ly was born. Spouse-ly Spouse-ly is an online marketplace where you can shop for products and services all created by military or first responder families. Monica likens it to "Etsy" and" Angie's List" colliding with a purpose of supporting our nation's heroes. This platform provides a place for spouses to create and earn money in the midst of the demanding lifestyles. Monica has hit the ground running, she was named "a Trailblazer in Tech by Military Spouse Magazine, Forbes Next 1000 List, and recently named on the MIGHTY 25 list as one of the most influential leaders supporting the military community." Learn More www.spouse-ly.com FB: fb.com/spousely Instagram: @spouse.ly VeteranCrowd Network Our "forever promise" is to build the veteran and military spouse community a place to connect and engage. VeteranCrowd is simply a national network of veterans, veteran led businesses and the resources they need to prosper. Subscribe to stay in touch, or consider if Individual or Corporate Membership in the Network is a fit for you. About Your Host Bob Louthan is a VMI Graduate, Army veteran, and executive with over 25 years of experience in mergers, acquisitions and private capital formation. He founded the VeteranCrowd Network to bring veterans and veteran-led businesses together with each other and the resources they need to prosper.

Matt Butler - Air Force Veteran, Inventor of Rollors, an Award Winning Outdoor Yard Game Matt didn't plan to spend a career in the Air Force, but after 9-11, he felt called to continue serving past his initial 4 year commitment. He spent his career flying surveillance aircraft all over the world. It was during one of his many deployments that the idea for Rollors was sparked. Often during deployments you think of home, family and friends. Matt was thinking of Minnesota and his desire for friends and family to hang out and socialize. When he got back state-side he began working on a prototype and people started to get interested. He sold his first 50 sets and realized he might have started something. Matt would tell you his experience in the Air Force has helped him as an entrepreneur and when he has time he loves to pass that knowledge along to other veteran entrepreneurs. Rollors Started with a desire to get people together, off their phones and enjoying the outdoors, Rollors has done that and more. Rollors is a mash up of other traditional games like Bocce Ball, Bowling and Horseshoes. It takes the best parts of those and adds in easy transport and set up. Rollors is an award-winning and unique game that is sure to be a hit at your next outdoor gathering or family event. Get one today! Check out who else has stepped into the Veteran Crowd Spotlight. Learn More www.rollors.com FB: fb.com/rollors Instagram: @rollors VeteranCrowd Network Our "forever promise" is to build the veteran and military spouse community a place to connect and engage. VeteranCrowd is simply a national network of veterans, veteran led businesses and the resources they need to prosper. Subscribe to stay in touch, or consider if Individual or Corporate Membership in the Network is a fit for you. About Your Host Bob Louthan is a VMI Graduate, Army veteran, and executive with over 25 years of experience in mergers, acquisitions and private capital formation. He founded the VeteranCrowd Network to bring veterans and veteran-led businesses together with each other and the resources they need to prosper.

Cameron Cruse - Cofounder of R. Riveter, Making Handbags to Hire Military Spouses Due to her husband's military orders, Cameron Cruse landed herself in the middle of nowhere Georgia in 2011. She had just graduated with her Master's in architecture but the hopes of building that career slowly faded. Soon after, Cameron met Lisa Bradley, her now business partner. Together they realized the challenge that they faced, finding meaningful employment as a military spouse. They knew this challenge was not unique to them. They set out to build a company that would first provide some kind of income opportunity to military spouses, R. Riveter was born. R. Riveter The mission came first and the product was decided afterwards. And today R. Riveter has grown its network of spouses or "Riveters" that are employed across the United States. Together they started created handbags, but that has grown to candles, gifts and more. They even offer an "heirloom" collection to transform your old military uniform, blanket or something else into a beautiful memory bag. In 2015 they opened a storefront in North Carolina. Shortly after they were featured on Shark Tank where they were able to gain an investor. The company continues to scale and grow to ultimately hire more military spouses. Check out who else has stepped into the Veteran Crowd Spotlight. Learn More www.rriveter.com FB: @rriveterbags Instagram: @rriveterbags VeteranCrowd Network Our "forever promise" is to build the veteran and military spouse community a place to connect and engage. VeteranCrowd is simply a national network of veterans, veteran led businesses and the resources they need to prosper. Subscribe to stay in touch, or consider if Individual or Corporate Membership in the Network is a fit for you. About Your Host Bob Louthan is a VMI Graduate, Army veteran, and executive with over 25 years of experience in mergers, acquisitions and private capital formation. He founded the VeteranCrowd Network to bring veterans and veteran-led businesses together with each other and the resources they need to prosper.

Don Bentley - New Book Release...Former Apache Helicopter Pilot, Now New York Times Best Selling Author Don Bentley was previously a guest on the VeteranCrowd spotlight, but is back to share the releases of two new books. Don Bentley has loved writing since he was a little kid. He started working on his first book in 3rd grade. In high school, his English teacher told him he had talent, but he wasn't quite ready to pursue writing full-time. Instead he landed himself at Ohio State working on an Electrical Engineering degree. Winning an Army ROTC scholarship, Don commissioned and became an Army Apache helicopter pilot, following his family's legacy of serving. This was just the first of many careers. Following his time in the military Don worked as an FBI Special Agent and eventually was a member of the Dallas Office Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) team. After law enforcement Don continued to work with several companies that develop technology for the U.S. Special Operations Community. Author Don's entire career helped shape and mold him into the writer he is today. His characters are born out of his own experiences and those he served with. He is the author of the Matt Drake thriller series, including Without Sanction and The Outside Man. The most recent one, Hostile Intent was just released this month. Don was also asked to write a Tom Clancy Jr. book, Target Acquired landing himself on the New York Times best selling list. The next in this series, Zero Hour, comes out the first week of June. Newest Books Hostile Intent, available now. Zero Hour, coming June 7th Check out who else has stepped into the Veteran Crowd Spotlight. Learn More Twitter: https://twitter.com/bentleydonb FB:https://www.facebook.com/bentleydonb https://donbentleybooks.com/ VeteranCrowd Network Our "forever promise" is to build the veteran and military spouse community a place to connect and engage. VeteranCrowd is simply a national network of veterans, veteran led businesses and the resources they need to prosper. Subscribe to stay in touch, or consider if Individual or Corporate Membership in the Network is a fit for you. About Your Host Bob Louthan is a VMI Graduate, Army veteran, and executive with over 25 years of experience in mergers, acquisitions and private capital formation. He founded the VeteranCrowd Network to bring veterans and veteran-led businesses together with each other and the resources they need to prosper.

Emily Miller and Kim Jung went to the West Point Military Academy, they were eventually connected to Keith Alaniz, a Texas A&M graduate while stationed at Ft. Leonard Wood. They served in Afghanistan together as Combat Engineers and eventually their friendships led to to founding Rumi Spice. Their time in Afghanistan and working with the Afghan people, gave them an idea for creating "sustainable rural economic development in Afghanistan and providing countless jobs to Afghan farmers and women who harvest and process the spice." Rumi Spice Founded in 2014, Rumi Spice hit the ground running with their mission of providing a market for Afghan saffron. They work directly with close to 1000 Afghan farmers to provide the world's highest quality saffron. Three years after their inception they appeared on Shark Tank, which opened doors to continue grow and expand their market. They are currently sold nationwide and are the first nationally distributed product from Afghanistan. Interested in trying out some spices? Check them out below. Learn More Website: https://www.rumispice.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rumispiceco Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rumi_spice VeteranCrowd Network Our "forever promise" is to build the veteran and military spouse community a place to connect and engage. VeteranCrowd is simply a national network of veterans, veteran led businesses and the resources they need to prosper. Subscribe to stay in touch, or consider if Individual or Corporate Membership in the Network is a fit for you. About Your Host Bob Louthan is a VMI Graduate, Army veteran, and executive with over 25 years of experience in mergers, acquisitions and private capital formation. He founded the VeteranCrowd Network to bring veterans and veteran-led businesses together with each other and the resources they need to prosper.

Daniel started his military service in the Army. After over 28 years serving he retired from the United States Marine Corps. During the transition into the civilian world, he knew he wanted to "chart his own course". He utilized the program boots to business, an entrepreneurial education program for transitioning service members. At the time popcorn wasn't on the horizon. He was looking to use his experience as a combat cameraman to launch a real estate photographer business, but as he pursued this he knew it wasn't the right path. In the meantime some close friends encouraged both he and his wife, Priscilla to contact a fellow veteran, who owned a popcorn store owner in Fredericksburg, VA. It was through this mentorship they were able to launch Popcorn Friday. Between Daniel's passion and Priscilla's, personal finance background and BS in Business Management they have continued to persevere through the challenges of being entrepreneurs and found great success. Popcorn Friday The name was inspired by a PTA event at Crossroads Elementary on Marine Corps Base, Quantico. Priscilla had volunteered when the kids were young and the name stuck in her head. So when the business was launched there was no question what it would be named. Popcorn Friday opened its doors in 2014 in Spring Branch, Texas. Just a few years it began being sold online, which paved the way for the success they have achieved today. They offer a wide variety or popcorn flavors from savory to sweet and anything in between. Interested in trying some out for your own popcorn Friday, fundraising need or your next corporate event. Check them out below. Learn More Website: https://www.popcornfriday.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PopcornFridaySanAntonio Instagram: @popcorn_friday VeteranCrowd Network Our "forever promise" is to build the veteran and military spouse community a place to connect and engage. VeteranCrowd is simply a national network of veterans, veteran led businesses and the resources they need to prosper. Subscribe to stay in touch, or consider if Individual or Corporate Membership in the Network is a fit for you. About Your Host Bob Louthan is a VMI Graduate, Army veteran, and executive with over 25 years of experience in mergers, acquisitions and private capital formation. He founded the VeteranCrowd Network to bring veterans and veteran-led businesses together with each other and the resources they need to prosper.

Lynn was serving overseas, in the Army when he first began writing. He had travelled to Greece for fun and decided to write an article about his time there. He submitted it to the military newspaper, Stars and Stripes. They decided to publish it. He continued to write about his travels while overseas but decided he didn't want to stop as he was transitioning out of active duty. Now over 40 years later, Lynn continues to travel with his wife, Cele. Together they have now co-authored two books. Lynn began to delve into writing fiction not too long ago and just signed a deal for the sequel to his first fiction novel. Books & Articles Lynn and Cele Seldon have published hundreds of articles in magazines such as Cruise Travel, Southern Living and Trailblazer and continue to do so. Lynn published his first novel, Virginia's Ring in 2014 and the sequel, Carolina's Ring is in the works. In addition together Lynn and Cele have written 100 Things to Do in Charleston Before You Die and 100 Things to Do in Savannah Before you Die. If you are traveling soon, check out their website and publications! Learn More Website: SeldonInk.com LinkIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lynnseldon/ VeteranCrowd Network Our "forever promise" is to build the veteran and military spouse community a place to connect and engage. VeteranCrowd is simply a national network of veterans, veteran led businesses and the resources they need to prosper. Subscribe to stay in touch, or consider if Individual or Corporate Membership in the Network is a fit for you. About Your Host Bob Louthan is a VMI Graduate, Army veteran, and executive with over 25 years of experience in mergers, acquisitions and private capital formation. He founded the VeteranCrowd Network to bring veterans and veteran-led businesses together with each other and the resources they need to prosper.