For the numerous individuals who have bravely and selflessly given of their time and energy in support of our country’s armed forces, many navigate a challenging road as they re-enter society following service. While many qualify for and enjoy various community supports offered to veterans, for others, the journey towards re-establishing a long-term life path within the civilian population can be demanding, even fraught with unforeseen obstacles.
Fortunately, VetsNet, a Wisconsin-based organization, exists to help guide and support veterans in times of greatest need. The program, directed by Wisconsin Veterans Network’s Executive Director Quentin Hatfield, “was established in 2016 to begin exploring how to identify services and connect veterans to them,” according to Hatfield. The idea for VetsNet originally arose in late 2015 and early 2016, when the board members of Milwaukee Homeless Veterans Initiative realized, according to Hatfield, that “their clients for food and furniture had many other needs and the veterans they served did not know who served those needs or where those services were.” He noted that the board developed and established the VetsNet organization because “they recognized that there was a need to help veterans navigate the veteran services space to address issues like homelessness and prevention, energy assistance, connection to health services and benefits, home and auto repairs, education benefits, and a host of other issues.”
At this time, VetsNet solely serves veterans in Wisconsin, though the organization maintains relationships with organizations in other states that supply similar services. Hatfield indicated that VetsNet will also “do the groundwork” to help locate agencies that can help offer necessary support to those in need elsewhere in the country.
Currently the Executive Director of the Wisconsin Veterans Network, Quentin Hatfield joined VetsNet shortly after he moved to Wisconsin. Before its formal incorporation in 2017, the board serving VetsNet began an official search for its leadership. As a Vietnam veteran, Hatfield had witnessed several friends and family members struggle during the transition back into civilian life following active service. “I became very interested in the mission as I became aware of it,” he commented on his interest in serving fellow veterans navigating familiar challenges. Hatfield further brought powerful experience to VetsNet from a leadership perspective, having previously served as CEO of three different companies in different states. In his words, this gave him “a skill set for leadership and the tools to establish a new brand and build awareness through outreach, public relations and single-minded focus on organization and recruiting skilled people to accomplish the mission.”
VetsNet was formally incorporated in early 2017 as a nonprofit. Prior to its formal incorporation, the organization had already helped 456 veterans secure needed assistance beyond the scope of Milwaukee Homeless Veterans Initiative’s work. Since many veterans and their families find the network of existing veterans-based services complex to navigate, VetsNet aimed to ease this process. Working with the VA, Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs (WDVA), the Veterans Service Organizations (VSO)—including VFW, American Legion, Disabled American Veterans, Paralyzed Veterans of America and others—as well as with over 500 other organizations serving veterans in Wisconsin, VetsNet aims to “serve veterans from any corner of the state with their needs,” according to Hatfield. VetsNet initially began by connecting veterans in southeastern Wisconsin to the over 150 veterans-service organizations in that part of the state.
VetsNet currently networks with and has partnered with veteran resource groups in other areas of Wisconsin, such as Madison, Wausau, Green Bay, Fond du Lac, and the Fox Valley region. Through these connections, Hatfield and the VetsNet staff seek to learn about the services each related organization provides, to better be able to partner with and “quickly meet the needs represented by our veteran population,” Hatfield explained. Hatfield seeks to understand and identify specifically what each veteran service organization offers as well as what veterans need to do to qualify for these services.
Because of the strength of these networks and connections, Hatfield explained that VetsNet was asked to represent the national program Onward Ops for the state of Wisconsin, starting in 2021. Through this partnership, Hatfield noted that VetsNet helps to “assist active-duty service members who are exiting the military to identify their needs prior to leaving active duty and [to] help them prepare a homecoming plan to address needs for housing, employment, medical and mental health services, VA home loan qualification and connection to VA health care when they exit active duty.”
In addition to thriving under Hatfield’s expert guidance, VetsNet further benefits from the inside knowledge and experience of its staff. Apart from VetsNet’s business manager, the entire professional staff of the organization are veterans. Of the organization’s ten-member board, eighty percent are either veterans or active duty/national guard service members. “The combined experience of our staff and board guides much of our discussion about service development and identifying groups of veterans not being adequately served,” Hatfield said.
Hatfield has steered VetsNet towards inclusion, and in particular, towards successfully meeting the needs of veterans who might not otherwise receive adequate support. “Since inception, we have sought to identify specific segments of the veteran community who are underserved,” Hatfield explained. “To that end, recruiting people of different racial and ethnic backgrounds [and] different genders has been important to us to help us understand cultural differences, and specifically [towards developing] effective ways to communicate across the entire veteran community.”
Among those who have served in the armed forces, Hatfield said that current members as well as veterans of the National Guard and Reserves “are often overlooked or don’t qualify for services other veterans do, so we have expanded our service offerings to include them and specifically reach out to them.”
In addition to seeking diversity within its staff and helping to reach out to a more diverse population of veterans, VetsNet seeks to continue to expand the scope of its governing board. As VetsNet grows, one goal, according to Hatfield, is to recruit board members from outside the southeastern Wisconsin region. Hatfield said he hopes that this might allow for expanded representation “of the various areas of the state which include both other urban areas and vastly rural areas whose veterans have differing needs.” In this manner, VetsNet strives to continue to broaden the positive impact it has on veterans’ lives, through increasing the population it serves and further expanding the access veterans have to the varied services they need.
VetsNet receives the bulk of its operating funds through a combination of grants, individual gifts, and corporate funding. VetsNet is unable to accept government funds, with the exception of one state-based grant recently received over the course of a few years. “Accepting federal funding limits the number of veterans we can serve, based on the Congressional definition of who is a veteran, effectively eliminating eligibility for almost half of the veteran population,” Hatfield explained. “We are continually fundraising for the emergency needs of the veterans we serve who do not qualify with any of our partner agencies. In 2024 and thus far in 2025, we have exceeded our budget for emergency needs by almost 40% both years due to the increased cost of every basic necessity,” Hatfield said.
Though VetsNet does not host regular fundraising events, and deals with sensitive or personal information or situations that limit the opportunity for volunteer involvement, the organization belongs to several veteran resource groups throughout the state. These groups continually host events that benefit from the help of volunteers, and VetsNet can help interested individuals join events that fit their talents and areas of interest or expertise.
Hatfield noted a special opportunity for those wishing to help facilitate VetsNet’s mission in person. “One sure way to be involved is to sign up to be a sponsor for a returning service member who is soon to be a veteran. The sign-up is easy, the training can be tailored to an individual’s schedule, and it’s online. The website for sign up is: www.onwardops.org,” he said.
Hatfield summarized the positive work that VetsNet has already performed and the vital services the organization provides: “Most people assume that veterans have access to a vast array of services and benefits and, for 50% of veterans, that is largely true. What most people don’t realize is that there are vast numbers of those who wore the uniforms of our armed services who do not qualify for services for various reasons, mostly related to the amount of active-duty service they had. Our belief is that if you wore the uniform and stood ready to serve our nation in service, either domestic or foreign, you are a veteran and should receive assistance when needed.”
This article is from the
EY November 2025 Issue