Joe Raudales decided it was time for a change.

His five years in the U.S. Navy included tours of duty in Japan and the Persian Gulf. He served aboard an amphibious ship off the coast of Somalia, and saw duty as an air traffic controller before he separated in 1996. He then spent 23 years as a psych technician, working in developmental centers for the state of California. Raudales frequently handled challenging cases before retiring in 2019.

The pandemic came and went. By the time it eased up, he was ready to get back into a job with the caveat of lower stress levels, while at the same time enabling him to use his long-developed interpersonal communication skills.

Raudales found that bliss working in food service at the Veterans Home of California-Yountville. He brings hot meals and warm conversations to veterans in the 91-year-old Holderman Hospital and other buildings on the campus. His wife, Sabrina, has worked at the Home for the past seven years as a music therapist.

He truly is a veteran serving veterans. But no, he’s not having a KP flashback from his early Navy days.

“I never worked in the galley,” he said. “I worked in the laundry detail instead.”

Food and conversation go hand in hand, and Raudales gets the satisfaction of delivering the former while engaging in the latter with other veterans who love telling their stories and hearing his.

“For me, it’s talking to the people here,” Raudales said. “I think they are setting the pace for us younger people. I’m hearing their stories. They hear mine. For them to know that I was part of that special class, a veteran, too, builds that common bond.”

It combines duty and honor; and goes beyond the walls of the venerable old Holderman Skilled Nursing Facility and will carry over to the new skilled nursing facility scheduled to replace Holderman in 2025.

“My boss also sends me to the Eisenhower (residential building) and the annexes,” Raudales said. “I’m building trust and rapport with the veterans.” He can use all of the interpersonal skills he developed during his psych tech days, but without the been-there, done-that intensity.

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Would you like the opportunity to serve veterans in your work? Join the CalVet team! We are dedicated to ensuring that veterans from every era, along with their families, receive the state and federal benefits and services they have earned and deserve due to their selfless and honorable military service. At CalVet, we prioritize serving veterans and their families with dignity, compassion, and a commitment to helping them achieve the highest quality of life. See our current career opportunities at www.calcareers.ca.gov/CalHRPublic/Search/JobSearchResults.aspx#depid=85[CT1] .

The Veterans Homes of California system of care offers affordable long-term care to older and disabled veterans as well as their eligible spouses and domestic partners. With eight facilities across the state, the services offered range from assisted living programs with minimal support to 24-hour skilled nursing care for veterans with significant clinical needs including memory care.

CalVet staff are uniquely capable of serving the needs of our veterans and provide an environment that honors their service to the country. The Veterans Homes are nationally recognized for the premier care and services they provide to California’s veterans. For more information on the Homes, visit www.calvet.ca.gov/calvet-programs/veteran-homes.