The Bossier Chamber of Commerce has a program for businesses to acquire the title of Military Community Champion and showcase their support for our military members, military spouses and veterans.
As we gear up for Military Appreciation Month, the Bossier Chamber invites all businesses interested in strengthening their relationship with our military community to fill out the free application to become a Military Community Champion.
At Barksdale Air Force Base, there are over 14,000 personnel and over 11,000 veterans in Bossier Parish, according to estimates from 2023. Providing a welcoming community for these military-connected individuals is good for everyone, including businesses.
We seek to create a business environment and community that:
- Highlights the numerous opportunities here for military spouses and children.
- Encourages our military members to stay here when they leave the military, because our businesses are committed to hiring veterans.
- Recruits businesses to the area because we have such a strong military, family and veteran footprint.
- Comes together to show everyone that we truly support our military, their families and our veterans.
As a Military Community Champion, you will get recognition for being a military-minded business. You care about the military members in our community and actively work to support them in a number of ways – now, others will be able to clearly see that.
Military Community Champions are listed on the Bossier Chamber website and on our Directory, as well as being promoted throughout the year. Your business will also receive special opportunities to connect with the military members of our community.
To become a Military Community Champion, your business must meet at least 4 of the following criteria:
- Offer a military discount.
- Give veterans preference when hiring.
- Participate in the DOD SkillBridge program.
- Provide a military mentorship program.
- Have hiring procedures in place to actively seek to hire military-connected individuals (veterans, spouses, dependents).
- Support Guard/Reserve deployments with accommodations like salary differential, full pay, medical, same career path upon return.
- Create a policy/maintain a goal to employ a certain percentage of military-connected individuals on your staff.
- Utilize and seek out suppliers/vendors that are veteran-owned businesses or service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses.
- Be a member of the Bossier Chamber.
- Give annually to a military related charitable cause or organization.
- Make disability accommodations for military-connected individuals.
- Have a program to support military/veterans/spouses
Find out more and sign up to be a Military Community Champion by visiting the link: https://go.bossierchamber.com/mcc