{"id":60450,"date":"2021-11-21T18:46:58","date_gmt":"2021-11-21T18:46:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/uncategorized\/2021\/11\/21\/iraq-war-veteran-launches-business-to-employ-former-soldiers\/"},"modified":"2026-08-18T20:57:13","modified_gmt":"2026-08-18T20:57:13","slug":"iraq-war-veteran-launches-business-to-employ-former-soldiers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/education-transition\/2021\/11\/21\/iraq-war-veteran-launches-business-to-employ-former-soldiers\/","title":{"rendered":"Iraq War veteran launches business to employ former soldiers"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

BRIGHTON TOWNSHIP, Mich. \u2014 Iraq War veteran Justin Billard is launching a business that will employ and support his fellow returned soldiers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tools for Veterans<\/a> is housed in a workshop that Billard, 42, set up in his home garage. There, he collects old hand tools, cleans and restores them and sells them online or at local events, the Livingston Daily<\/a> reports.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He plans to expand the business to a larger workshop in the Brighton area in the next year. He also hopes to fill the shop with veterans who love restoring old tools.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou want to contribute to something you understand and believe in,\u201d he said. \u201cIf you have a connection, you are more passionate.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Billard previously ran a private detective agency. But now with a wife, a 4-year-old daughter and a set of newborn twins, it was time to pivot to a less risky career, he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Billard\u2019s new company, Tools for Veterans, will donate a percentage of profits on a quarterly basis to charities that support veterans\u2019 causes with an emphasis on those in Livingston County.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He currently employs two veterans and one employee who is not a veteran. He hopes to hire more in the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Billard is also working on a series of videos telling veterans\u2019 stories<\/a> \u2014 he describes them as \u201ckitchen table\u201d interviews \u2014 which he\u2019ll share on social media.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI think documenting those stories is important to get the whole picture. What did they do when they returned? Were they married during their service? Some guys have 30 or 40 years of career experience after the service.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He said he\u2019ll also post instructional videos on tool restoration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Brighton Township resident Justin Billard appreciates the look of vintage shop tools and supplies, displaying them proudly in his garage shop. Tuesday, Nov. 9, 2021. Billard is launching a Brighton Township business that will employ and support his fellow returned soldiers. Tools for Veterans is housed in a workshop that Billard, 42, set up in his home garage. (Gillis Benedict\/Livingston County Daily Press & Argus via AP)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Billard\u2019s favorite tool he\u2019s restored is a bench vise he found at a neighborhood garage sale.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When he found it at the sale, it was covered in grime and rusted. The parts didn\u2019t move at all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While restoring the vise, he uncovered stamped words on a small plaque on the side of the tool that gave him a clue as to its history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The plaque indicated that the vise was in the World War II era by the Defense Plant Corp., a government-chartered agency that supported manufacturing during the war.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today, the Columbian vise is in full working condition and a centerpiece of one of Billard\u2019s workbenches.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Each tool he sells to buyers will come with a thank you note.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt talks about how the tools have a story and journey and then it becomes a part of their story.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other prized restorations in his workshop include a 1930s dye filler that was used by one of the auto manufacturers in Detroit at the time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He found a late-1800s workbench at a house in Troy. He is restoring it to use once he moves into a larger workshop.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He also acquired and a one-of-a-kind iron American flag made for a retiring Detroit union ironworker in the 1990s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThese are the interactions I love,\u201d he said. \u201cHearing stories of the tools.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\t