bill heyob
Bureau Chief at Office of Veterans Advocacy, Idaho Division of Veterans Services | Boise, Idaho
Bill Heyob spent nearly a quarter century with the U.S. Marine Corps, with deployments including Panama, Honduras, Bosnia, Japan, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq, and Afghanistan.
When Heyob retired from the Marine Corps as a sergeant major at Camp Lejeune, N.C., in December 2012, he was hired by the Idaho Division of Veterans Services as a state veteran service officer. He took training at the Veterans of Foreign Wars Advanced Veteran Service Officer Training Course in Annapolis, Maryland and found the role to be exactly what Heyob was looking for after the military.
As a veteran service officer, for more than a decade, Heyob has helped Idaho veterans and surviving spouses determine eligibility for VA benefits and assist with completion, submission, and tracking of their claims.
Heyob’s dedication to country and community earned him national recognition from the Veterans of Foreign Wars #StillServing campaign, which honored veterans who continue to serve after active duty.
In his own words, Heyob said he “feels like Santa every day” because he’s able to help veterans understand VA benefits that they often may not be aware of. Those veterans are “usually amazed and always beyond grateful” for the assistance.
“I am fortunate to work for the state of Idaho with the Idaho Division of Veterans Services,” said Heyob. “Many veterans say the hardest thing about the military is trying to re-learn how not to be in the military once they leave active duty as civilians do not understand us.”
JORge hernandez
Education Specialist, Boise State University Services Center | Boise, Idaho
Jorge Hernandez is proof that you do not need to be born in America to dutifully serve in the U.S. military. As a teenager, Hernandez and his sister left El Salvador for California in search of a better life.
In 2001, Hernandez was a senior in high school when the attacks of September 11th happened.
“I joined the Marines Corps the day after,” he explained.
By 2003, Hernandez had been deployed to the Middle East and would serve more than 11 years in the Marines Corps. During his service, he was promoted to the rank of sergeant and was twice wounded in combat.
“For a lot of people, coming from the war, it’s hard to get past the events that happened there,” he said.
Following his Marine Corps service, Hernandez attended Boise State University, graduating in 2020 with a degree in business administration. His education at Boise State had a profound impact on Hernandez and is the reason he currently works at the university’s Veteran Services Center as an education specialist.
“It meant so much to me, a kid from El Salvador,” said Hernandez. “I didn’t think I would ever graduate from a four-year university in the United States. Now I get to help other first-generation and non-traditional students finish their degrees.”
Hernandez has words of encouragement for other veterans thinking about getting a college degree.
“Don’t try to go to school alone,” he said. “I was once one of those vets who sat in the back of the classroom and didn’t speak. I want other veterans to know that we have an open-door policy, even if you just need an ear to listen.”