HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. — Brian Halstead is a local veteran who served over 20 years in the service and did three tours in Afghanistan. But he managed to use those tough memories to launch a tool to help other veterans.
It was a family tradition—Brian's grandfather, brothers, and son all served in the army.
"There’s an awful lot of hard, bitter training that you don’t tell those stories at Thanksgiving," Halstead said.
Despite the tough training, Halstead said nothing compared to the pain in his heart when his daughter was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia.
"When the medical team says, 'Hey, you need to start making arrangements,' it's a bad, bad day." he continued.
Ultimately, his daughter pulled through, but shortly after she was released from the hospital, 9/11 happened.
After Halstead watched his daughter fight for her life in the hospital bed, he went to fight for his country in Afghanistan.
Halstead said his daughter only got stronger and now lives a beautiful life. He served 21 years in the army, a chapter of his life that he said will never fully close.
"Depending on what I’m doing and who I’m with, [there will be] a couple of minutes worth of flashbacks," Halstead said. "It's like, 'Oh yeah, remember the time?'"
His time in the service led him to help other veterans get a job after the army. Halstead created a tool called Vetlign, which helps connect veterans with companies across North America.
He said they have helped thousands of veterans get jobs.
Vetlign shows veterans exactly what jobs they are qualified for, and companies can see the profile of candidates that match the skillset they need.
