Rembert nonprofit recognized for commitment to veteran employees

The post office brought her here, and the people of Rembert make her want to stay here.

When Juanita Greggs-Britton relocated to Sumter County to continue her career as a postal worker, one of the first things she noticed was the local kids. She was worried about them and wanted to support them taking a positive path in life, she said.

So in 2002, she founded the Rembert Area Community Coalition, a nonprofit focused on meeting the needs of Rembert locals of all ages.

Tucked between Camden Highway and Bradley Street are a car wash, youth center, basketball court and senior center. With these, the RACC serves the surrounding community with an after-school program, car wash and a food bank as well as other enriching activities for people of all ages like field trips.

"The Lord will give back to those who give to others," Greggs-Britton said, remembering when she and her grandmother came across $23 in cash decades ago during a time when they really needed it.

Today, the RACC needs help in order to keep helping locals, so Greggs-Britton applied for the HIRE Vets Medallion Award through the U.S. Department of Labor.

And the department announced late last week that RACC was selected as one of a few South Carolina businesses or nonprofits for the award. This award will make the RACC be nationally recognized for its hiring of veterans and will thus attract more veteran applicants.

Greggs-Britton said that veterans make excellent employees.

"We can use the skills they already have and just make what we are doing better because I can only be so many places at once," she said.

The HIRE Vets Medallion Award is an annual program where businesses of any size across the country can apply in order to attract more veteran applicants.

"Veterans bring specific skill sets based off of their training and education in the military into any corporate environment, and they're excelling," said James D. Rodriguez, assistant secretary for Veterans' Employment and Training Service through the Department of Labor. "Our veterans outperform our nonveteran peers in the workplace, and they get promoted at a higher rate than our nonveteran peers."

Visit the RACC's website to learn more about volunteer and employment opportunities.