Naperville veterans looking for career help and camaraderie have a monthly gathering built for them.
Roll Call Chicagoland, a nonprofit founded in April 2017, holds meetups on the second Tuesday of each month in Naperville, Libertyville and Chicago, connecting military-affiliated job seekers with employers and mentors, as first reported by Shaw Local.
The group received its federal nonprofit status in 2025. With Veterans Day falling on Wednesday, Nov. 11, the organization offers a year-round resource for veterans navigating the shift to civilian work.
"Roll Call brings together military-affiliated individuals and professional types looking for jobs and careers … to network and grow our community," executive director Noel Yucuis said in the Shaw Local report.
Yucuis, a U.S. Air Force veteran, said she discovered her sense of purpose through the organization about three years ago.
Justin Miller, one of Roll Call's original organizers, grew up in DuPage County and lives in Winfield. The U.S. Army veteran said most veterans hear about the group through word of mouth.
Before the nonprofit was formally organized, Miller and others were putting together veteran-centered job events at companies including Discover, Exelon Corp. and PepsiCo. All had former service members on staff, Miller said.
"We are exceptionally good at connecting job-seeking veterans with a community that can help them. That's it. Everything that we do beyond that, iterates from that," Miller said.
The group also runs a mentorship program led by Army veteran Martin Fernandez.
The program pairs veterans who found work through Roll Call with those still searching. Fernandez said coaching helped him realize his engineering and telecom skills translated into the supply-chain field.
In July, Roll Call partnered with Bell Works Chicagoland in Hoffman Estates for a career and resource fair. The event drew 70 organizations and 422 registered attendees, according to Shaw Local. It included panels on entrepreneurship and digital infrastructure, professional development workshops, free headshots and an evening networking reception.
"This is the biggest thing we have done so far," Yucuis said. "We want it to be even bigger."
Meetup dates and locations are posted on the Roll Call Chicagoland Facebook page. More information is available at rollcallchicagoland.org.
