Nearly 500 veterans made Indiana their home within a year through INvet

INDIANAPOLIS — INvets has helped nearly 500 veterans relocate to Indiana in the past year.

The organization said it has led to $9 million worth of economic impact.

Members of the military face a myriad of challenges being away from home, missing their families, not to mention the dangers of serving. But transitioning back home isn't easy.

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"I was in the United States army for seven years working in military intelligence," said veteran Kevin Kvasnicka.

Kvasnicka has seen a lot of the world.

"I was stationed in Fort Campbell, Kentucky, Hawaii, and did a tour over in Iraq," he said.

His wife was his support system.

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"We wrote letters all throughout basic training," he said.

Recently, he was faced with the challenge of becoming a civilian again.

:A lot of stress. There is a lot of difficult things you have to work through,"said Kvasnicka.

In Hawaii, he learned about INvets, an organization that helps those who served and their families.

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"I actually met Dana Lesko at a job fair on Scofield Barrett's in Hawaii, and he introduced me to the INvets program. And INvets is what really persuaded my wife and I to make the decision to move to Indianapolis," he said.

INvets lets them choose where they want to live and helps them find a job.

"We really talk about the different types of living in Indiana, whether that's urban, suburban or rural, and the fact that you're really never more than 30 minutes away from any one of those," said INvets President and CEO Blaine Zimmerman.

Nearly 500 veterans relocated to Indiana within the last year.

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Marion, Allen and Hamilton counties are the top three choices, according to the organization.

Zimmerman says the state provides funding throughout the process.

"We have many other states that are looking to replicate what we're doing around the country," said Zimmerman.

Kvasicka now is a production supervisor at Wabash Trucking in Lafayette.

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He's happy and moving forward.

"If you or anyone you know is currently in the service and are about to get out, they're worried about what's going to happen, have them look into INvets. They're a great program. I'm a success story of them," he said.

For more information on INvets, click here .