{"id":24354,"date":"2026-04-29T17:48:48","date_gmt":"2026-04-29T21:48:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/?p=24354"},"modified":"2026-04-29T17:54:59","modified_gmt":"2026-04-29T21:54:59","slug":"2026-small-business-award","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/stories\/2026-small-business-award\/","title":{"rendered":"Celebrating Military-Connected Small Business Owners\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-hiring-our-heroes-2026-small-business-grant-program-awards\"><em>Hiring Our Heroes 2026 Small Business Grant Program Awards<\/em><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Business leaders and community advocates came together for the 2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/small-business-grant\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Small Business Grant Program<\/a> Awards ceremony on April 29 in Washington, D.C. From a pool of more than 1,240 applicants, five veteran- and military spouse-owned businesses were recognized \u2014 a testament to the depth of entrepreneurial talent in the military-connected community and the growing case for investing in it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Hiring Our Heroes Small Business Grant Program, powered by the <a href=\"https:\/\/fedexcares.com\/stories\/engaging-people-communities\/honoring-fred-smiths-legacy-fedex-founders-fund\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">FedEx Founder\u2019s Fund<\/a>, provides one-time grants to help veteran- and military spouse-owned small businesses sustain and grow their impact in local communities. The 2026 awards ceremony was supported by the FedEx Founder\u2019s Fund, Visa, and USAA Small Business Insurance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This year, four recipients were awarded $10,000 grants, and one standout business received the $25,000 grand prize.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-meet-the-2026-small-business-grant-awardees\">Meet the 2026 Small Business Grant Awardees<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:52px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" style=\"padding-bottom: 35px;\" width=\"728\" height=\"410\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/T71nan-II9o?si=GBBTD1no3MGkzq5L\" title=\"YouTube video player\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><strong>Rail Haus<\/strong> \u2013 <strong>Dover, DE <em>(Grand Prize Recipient)<\/em><\/strong><\/strong>&nbsp;&nbsp;<br>U.S. Air Force veterans Donny and Kim Legans brought their vision for a welcoming community gathering space to life with <a href=\"https:\/\/railhaus.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Rail Haus<\/a>, a vibrant restaurant and beer garden designed to bring people together through craft drinks, local partnerships, and events for all ages. <br>The Legans plan to use their grant to expand their outdoor&nbsp;space,&nbsp;grow the business, and welcome even more neighbors into their community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" style=\"padding-bottom: 35px;\" width=\"728\" height=\"410\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/ePNz2ImZoj4?si=gF1h1rh35vvwBvPV\" title=\"YouTube video player\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><strong>Organized Q \u2013 Alexandria, VA<\/strong><\/strong>&nbsp;<br>Founded by military spouse Gabriela \u201cGabi\u201d Q. Bell, <a href=\"https:\/\/organizedq.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Organized Q<\/a> is a virtual executive assistant firm with a mission dedicated to creating remote career opportunities for military spouses, veterans, and underemployed professionals, while supporting nonprofits, small businesses, and enterprises worldwide.<br>Gabi&nbsp;plans to use the grant to&nbsp;reinvest in her team and create paid internships for military-connected young professionals at the start of their careers.<strong>&nbsp;<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:63px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" style=\"padding-bottom: 35px;\" width=\"728\" height=\"410\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/8gSJU5aXn0o?si=9mq5yIqNsalZIrv2\" title=\"YouTube video player\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><strong>Balanced Wellness \u2013 Ridgeland, SC<\/strong><\/strong>&nbsp;<br>Military spouse Dr. Theresa Roman founded <a href=\"https:\/\/balanced-wellness.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Balanced Wellness<\/a>, a mental healthcare clinic providing in-person and virtual therapy for individuals, couples, and families. She built the practice on the resilience and adaptability that come with 22 years as a military spouse, keeping service to others at the center of her work.<br>Dr. Roman&nbsp;plans to use the grant to&nbsp;grow&nbsp;her&nbsp;business, expand staff training and specialization,&nbsp;and continue&nbsp;offering low or&nbsp;no-cost&nbsp;therapy to members of her community.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:57px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" style=\"padding-bottom: 35px;\" width=\"728\" height=\"410\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/gsNMzk7ffbI?si=LENy05O4mXYN0aZb\" title=\"YouTube video player\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><strong>The Laundry Basket \u2013 Hyattsville, MD<\/strong><\/strong>&nbsp;<br>With a mission rooted in dignity, confidence, and opportunity, U.S. Army veteran Hyacinth Tucker founded <a href=\"https:\/\/laundrybasketdelivery.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The Laundry Basket<\/a>, a tech-enabled laundry and dry-cleaning delivery service that combines convenience with workforce development. The business also gives back through its <em>Loads of Love<\/em> initiative, supporting families in need.<br>Hyacinth plans to use the grant to invest in veteran and military spouse hiring and training, including paid stipends, onboarding tools, and community outreach events.&nbsp; &nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:63px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" style=\"padding-bottom: 35px;\" width=\"728\" height=\"410\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/jMew3-Pc4HY?si=DPxoBA5pLOyJA_GD\" title=\"YouTube video player\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><strong>Langhorne Electrical &amp; Contracting \u2013 Leesville, LA<\/strong><\/strong>&nbsp;<br>U.S. Air Force veteran Elijah Langhorne founded <a href=\"https:\/\/langhornecontracting.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Langhorne Electrical &amp; Contracting<\/a> to do more than complete projects. He built a veteran-led company that creates jobs, trains skilled workers, strengthens storm resilience, and reinvests in a community often overlooked, turning every contract into a ripple of opportunity, pride, and economic stability.<br>Elijah plans to use the grant to scale his business through investing in systems, tools, and team development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:25px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-recognizing-military-connected-entrepreneurship\">Recognizing Military-Connected Entrepreneurship<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Now in its third year, the Hiring Our Heroes Small Business Grant Program has awarded more than $160,000 in grants to 15 military-connected businesses. With thousands of applicants across three cycles, the program has made one thing clear: the military-connected entrepreneurial community is deep, growing, and ready for investment \u2014 and every dollar behind these businesses pays dividends in stronger local economies and communities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The event also reinforced the vital role of corporate support in empowering these entrepreneurs. Representatives from the FedEx Founder\u2019s Fund, Visa, and USAA shared their organizations\u2019 continued commitment to supporting veteran- and military spouse-owned small businesses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cSupporting veterans and veteran-owned businesses matters for a simple reason: investing in those who have served is an investment in our nation&#8217;s future,\u201d said\u00a0Samantha Smith Atkinson, Staff Director of Global Public Policy at\u00a0FedEx. \u201cVeteran-owned businesses create jobs, strengthen local economies, and reflect the values that define our country \u2014 perseverance, innovation, and service.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">During the ceremony, the Honorable Patrick Murphy, a Hiring Our Heroes Ambassador, emphasized the economic impact of military-connected entrepreneurs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cSmall businesses are the backbone of the U.S. economy,\u201d Patrick explained. \u201cVeteran- and military spouse-owned small businesses generate over $1 trillion in annual revenue, employ millions, and are force multipliers in our nation. They are patriots who are called to continue to serve our nation even after they put away their uniform.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Eric Eversole, President of Hiring Our Heroes, concluded the ceremony by applauding this year\u2019s recipients for their perseverance, innovation, and continued service, while encouraging sustained investment in military-connected entrepreneurship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThank you for joining us to support and celebrate these amazing veteran- and military spouse-owned small businesses,\u201d Eric said. \u201cWe see the difference that they are making in their communities each and every day. We are honored to help recognize them and play a small role in celebrating their success, and we look forward to seeing that continued growth for years to come.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h6 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-learn-more-about-the-impact-of-the-fedex-founder-s-fund-founding-sponsor-of-the-hiring-our-heroes-small-business-grant-program-by-visiting-fedexcares-com-nbsp-nbsp\">Learn more about the impact of the FedEx Founder\u2019s Fund, founding sponsor of the Hiring Our Heroes Small Business Grant Program, by visiting <a href=\"https:\/\/fedexcares.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">FedExCares.com<\/a>. &nbsp;&nbsp;<\/h6>\n\n\n\n<h6 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-for-more-information-about-this-initiative-partnership-opportunities-or-resources-for-your-business-visit-hiring-our-heroes-small-business-grant-program-nbsp\">For more information about this initiative, partnership opportunities, or resources for your business, visit <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/small-business-grant\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Hiring Our Heroes Small Business Grant Program.<\/a>&nbsp;<\/h6>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Hiring Our Heroes Small Business Grant Program provides grants to help veteran- and military spouse-owned small businesses grow their impact in local communities. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":24467,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[25,62,53],"tags":[58,69,66,322,320,321,55],"service_role":[159,251,17],"class_list":["post-24354","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles","category-honoring-their-service","category-stories-of-success","tag-events","tag-military-spouses","tag-military-transition","tag-partnership","tag-small-business","tag-small-business-grant-program","tag-veterans","service_role-military-spouse","service_role-military-connected","service_role-veteran"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v28.1 (Yoast SEO v28.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Celebrating Military-Connected Small Business Owners\u00a0 - Hiring Our Heroes<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Meet the 2026 award recipients of the Hiring Our Heroes Small Business Grant Program and learn how this program impacts military-connected entrepreneurs.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/stories\/2026-small-business-award\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Celebrating Military-Connected Small Business Owners\u00a0\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Meet the 2026 award recipients of the Hiring Our Heroes Small Business Grant Program and learn how this program impacts military-connected entrepreneurs.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/stories\/2026-small-business-award\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Hiring Our Heroes\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/hiringourheroes\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-04-29T21:48:48+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-04-29T21:54:59+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SBA26_BlogFeature.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2400\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Hiring Our Heroes\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@hiringourheroes\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@hiringourheroes\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Hiring Our Heroes\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/stories\\\/2026-small-business-award\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/stories\\\/2026-small-business-award\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Hiring Our Heroes\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/3ccb0aa655bfa069275fb0d3241e3415\"},\"headline\":\"Celebrating Military-Connected Small Business Owners\u00a0\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-04-29T21:48:48+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-29T21:54:59+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/stories\\\/2026-small-business-award\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":910,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/stories\\\/2026-small-business-award\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/SBA26_BlogFeature.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Events\",\"Military Spouses\",\"Military Transition\",\"Partnership\",\"Small Business\",\"Small Business Grant Program\",\"Veterans\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Articles\",\"Honoring Their Service\",\"Stories of Success\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/stories\\\/2026-small-business-award\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/stories\\\/2026-small-business-award\\\/\",\"name\":\"Celebrating Military-Connected Small Business Owners\u00a0 - Hiring Our Heroes\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/stories\\\/2026-small-business-award\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/stories\\\/2026-small-business-award\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/SBA26_BlogFeature.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-04-29T21:48:48+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-29T21:54:59+00:00\",\"description\":\"Meet the 2026 award recipients of the Hiring Our Heroes Small Business Grant Program and learn how this program impacts military-connected entrepreneurs.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/stories\\\/2026-small-business-award\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/stories\\\/2026-small-business-award\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/stories\\\/2026-small-business-award\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/SBA26_BlogFeature.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/SBA26_BlogFeature.jpg\",\"width\":2400,\"height\":1200,\"caption\":\"2026 Small Business Award recipients pose with sponsors. From left to right: The Honorable Patrick Murphy, Elizabeth O'Brien, Nate Summers, Donny Legans, Hyacinth Tucker, Gabi Bell, Savier Roman, Elijah Langhorne, Samantha Smith Atkinson, Gen Harrison-Doss, and Eric Eversole\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/stories\\\/2026-small-business-award\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Celebrating Military-Connected Small Business Owners\u00a0\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/\",\"name\":\"Hiring Our Heroes\",\"description\":\"The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation&#039;s Hiring Our Heroes (HOH) initiative launched in March 2011 as a nationwide effort to connect veterans, service.\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Hiring Our Heroes\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2022\\\/11\\\/hoh-logo-rebrand.svg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2022\\\/11\\\/hoh-logo-rebrand.svg\",\"width\":1035,\"height\":181,\"caption\":\"Hiring Our Heroes\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/hiringourheroes\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/hiringourheroes\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.instagram.com\\\/hiringourheroes\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.linkedin.com\\\/company\\\/hiringourheroes\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/3ccb0aa655bfa069275fb0d3241e3415\",\"name\":\"Hiring Our Heroes\",\"sameAs\":[\"bprouty@uschamber.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hiringourheroes.org\\\/stories\\\/author\\\/hiring-our-heroes\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Celebrating Military-Connected Small Business Owners\u00a0 - Hiring Our Heroes","description":"Meet the 2026 award recipients of the Hiring Our Heroes Small Business Grant Program and learn how this program impacts military-connected entrepreneurs.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/stories\/2026-small-business-award\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Celebrating Military-Connected Small Business Owners\u00a0","og_description":"Meet the 2026 award recipients of the Hiring Our Heroes Small Business Grant Program and learn how this program impacts military-connected entrepreneurs.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/stories\/2026-small-business-award\/","og_site_name":"Hiring Our Heroes","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/hiringourheroes","article_published_time":"2026-04-29T21:48:48+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-04-29T21:54:59+00:00","og_image":[{"width":2400,"height":1200,"url":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SBA26_BlogFeature.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Hiring Our Heroes","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@hiringourheroes","twitter_site":"@hiringourheroes","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Hiring Our Heroes","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/stories\/2026-small-business-award\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/stories\/2026-small-business-award\/"},"author":{"name":"Hiring Our Heroes","@id":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/#\/schema\/person\/3ccb0aa655bfa069275fb0d3241e3415"},"headline":"Celebrating Military-Connected Small Business Owners\u00a0","datePublished":"2026-04-29T21:48:48+00:00","dateModified":"2026-04-29T21:54:59+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/stories\/2026-small-business-award\/"},"wordCount":910,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/stories\/2026-small-business-award\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SBA26_BlogFeature.jpg","keywords":["Events","Military Spouses","Military Transition","Partnership","Small Business","Small Business Grant Program","Veterans"],"articleSection":["Articles","Honoring Their Service","Stories of Success"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/stories\/2026-small-business-award\/","url":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/stories\/2026-small-business-award\/","name":"Celebrating Military-Connected Small Business Owners\u00a0 - Hiring Our Heroes","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/stories\/2026-small-business-award\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/stories\/2026-small-business-award\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SBA26_BlogFeature.jpg","datePublished":"2026-04-29T21:48:48+00:00","dateModified":"2026-04-29T21:54:59+00:00","description":"Meet the 2026 award recipients of the Hiring Our Heroes Small Business Grant Program and learn how this program impacts military-connected entrepreneurs.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/stories\/2026-small-business-award\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/stories\/2026-small-business-award\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/stories\/2026-small-business-award\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SBA26_BlogFeature.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SBA26_BlogFeature.jpg","width":2400,"height":1200,"caption":"2026 Small Business Award recipients pose with sponsors. From left to right: The Honorable Patrick Murphy, Elizabeth O'Brien, Nate Summers, Donny Legans, Hyacinth Tucker, Gabi Bell, Savier Roman, Elijah Langhorne, Samantha Smith Atkinson, Gen Harrison-Doss, and Eric Eversole"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/stories\/2026-small-business-award\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Celebrating Military-Connected Small Business Owners\u00a0"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/","name":"Hiring Our Heroes","description":"The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation&#039;s Hiring Our Heroes (HOH) initiative launched in March 2011 as a nationwide effort to connect veterans, service.","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/#organization","name":"Hiring Our Heroes","url":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/hoh-logo-rebrand.svg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/hoh-logo-rebrand.svg","width":1035,"height":181,"caption":"Hiring Our Heroes"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/hiringourheroes","https:\/\/x.com\/hiringourheroes","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/hiringourheroes","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/hiringourheroes"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/#\/schema\/person\/3ccb0aa655bfa069275fb0d3241e3415","name":"Hiring Our Heroes","sameAs":["bprouty@uschamber.com"],"url":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/stories\/author\/hiring-our-heroes\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24354","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24354"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24354\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/24467"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24354"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24354"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24354"},{"taxonomy":"service_role","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hiringourheroes.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/service_role?post=24354"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}