With major military installations such as Fort Bragg and Camp Lejeune, observers might expect North Carolina to have a larger-than-average share of military veterans living in the state.
Until recently, though, North Carolina ranked No. 9 in both overall population and number of veterans. To Ilario Pantano, director of the N.C. Division of Veterans Affairs, this signifies that the state was doing too little to keep veterans in the Tar Heel State at the conclusion of their military service.
Pantano has been working since 2013 to boost state services for military veterans. He shared details of his work Monday with the John Locke Foundation’s Shaftesbury Society. In the video clip below, Pantano details the impact of focusing on making Nortth Carolina veteran-friendly.
Click here to watch the full 43:25 presentation.