Eric Espinoza - Fellow

After completing a year of college, Eric Espinoza decided to join the U.S. Army to find stability and a regular income for his family. He would go on to serve for nine years, including a deployment to Iraq with an Air Defense Task Force that provided air and missile defense coverage for CENTCOM during the U.S. invasion in March 2003. 

Espinoza heard about the House Wounded Warrior Program through the Wounded Warrior Project's "Warriors to Work" initiative. He applied for a fellowship with Congressman Steve Pearce in the 2nd district of New Mexico.

A veterans case worker in a district that includes a large portion of New Mexico’s population, Espinoza is part of a Veterans Advisory Council. The council comprises various veterans service organizations, all of which work together to improve the quality of medical care available to veterans in the region.  

Espinoza is working to get the word out to veterans who are not yet registered with the VA. Many are older veterans who have previously gone uncounted and unaware of updated entitlements offered through the VA. 

This work often produces some of his job's most satisfying moments.“The most rewarding part of this job," he says, "is the look on the veterans’ faces when they finally get their education benefits or a medal that was never awarded. I get to keep serving my battle buddies.”