What Is VetWorks Ocala?

VetWorks Ocala is a network of veteran-owned and veteran-active businesses across Marion County, Florida. It's a member chapter of the Ocala/Marion Chamber & Economic Partnership (CEP) — the area's 130+ year old chamber of commerce — and serves as the dedicated veteran chapter under the broader CEP umbrella.

The members are veterans who served — Marine Corps, Army, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard, Space Force — and who today are active in the Marion County business community. Some own their own companies. Others lead inside larger organizations. All of them showed up after they took off the uniform, built businesses or careers in Ocala and Marion County, and decided the best way to keep serving was to keep showing up — for each other, for their customers, and for the community.

The network has three jobs: connect veterans in business, refer work to each other, and continue serving the community in business as we did in uniform. That's it. No paid memberships, no leadership ladder, no political agenda. Lunch on the second Tuesday of every month, real introductions, and a member spotlight. That's the cadence.

VetWorks Ocala began inside the Ocala/Marion CEP after COVID. The idea was simple: rebuild veteran-led business community after a year that pulled everyone apart. It stayed quiet at first — a few veterans on a CEP committee, occasional emails, no consistent rhythm.

The network didn't really take off until 2022, when Owen McCarthy stepped up and took the lead. A former Army officer and West Point graduate now in banking, Owen knew the playbook: pick a date, pick a place, show up, and keep showing up. We started meeting monthly at the Power Plant business incubator — a handful of veterans, lunch together, and the start of something that stuck.

The veterans listed on vetworksocala.com/members today are the founding members — the ones who kept showing up month after month and built this network into what it is. Every one of them plays a role in why we still meet.

What started in a small incubator room is now a directory of veteran-owned businesses, a monthly network that meets in person at rotating venues, and a community of veterans — owners and the people who work alongside them — who hire, refer, and show up for each other across Marion County.

Every decision the network makes runs through three values, in this order:

You'll see these pillars on the homepage, in the footer, and embedded in everything the network does. They aren't marketing language — they're the criteria we use when deciding what to spend time on.

Eligibility is broader than most people expect. The network is for Marion County veterans active in the local business community — and "active in business" covers a lot of ground:

• Business owners (the most obvious case)
• Veterans in leadership roles at established companies
• Veterans who work for someone else but operate in business contexts (sales, account management, professional services)
• Veterans transitioning out of military service into business ownership or business roles

The shared thread is military service plus current activity in the local business community. We aren't exclusive about job title or company size — we're exclusive about the connection between veterans and the work of building Marion County.

Full membership requires Ocala/Marion CEP membership (the broader chamber affiliation). Veterans who aren't CEP members yet are welcome for up to two trial lunches as a try-before-you-buy. Come, meet the room, see if the network is for you, and then make the CEP decision if it is.

The Ocala/Marion Chamber & Economic Partnership is the Marion County area chamber of commerce, founded in 1887. Their tagline — "the Voice of Business since 1887" — captures their role: they are the primary advocacy, networking, and economic development organization for Marion County businesses.

VetWorks Ocala sits inside the CEP umbrella as a member chapter, specifically for veterans active in the local business community. That affiliation matters for three reasons:

1. Credibility and reach. The CEP is the established local business authority. Affiliation plugs the network into broader Marion County business events, partner relationships, and a name that carries real local weight.
2. Resources. CEP members have access to the chamber's broader programming — economic development resources, government affairs, networking groups beyond just veterans. VetWorks is one slice; the CEP is the whole pie.
3. Sustainability. Volunteer organizations come and go. Being a chapter under a 130+ year old chamber means the network is structurally stable.

The simplest way to think about it: VetWorks Ocala is the veteran chapter, the CEP is the umbrella, Marion County is the geography. All three matter.

The 2nd Tuesday of every month, 12:00 to 1:30 PM, lunch. That's the cadence. It doesn't change.

Venues rotate. A given month's meeting might be hosted at a member's business (preferred — gives the room a chance to see each other's operations in person), at a local veteran-owned business that isn't a member yet but should be, or at a local restaurant when a venue rotation falls through. The venue is announced in advance through vetworksocala.com/events.

What happens at the meetings is intentionally simple: lunch, real introductions (everyone introduces themselves and their business — not as a sales pitch, but as a useful summary so the room knows who's in it), and a member spotlight where one member goes deeper on their business, what they do, and how the room can refer to them.

There's no agenda beyond that. No officers, no minutes, no votes. The network operates on showing up, paying attention to each other, and following up.

The directory at vetworksocala.com/members is open to the public — anyone in Marion County can browse it, find a veteran-owned business in the category they need, and reach out. That's by design. The directory exists to help non-veteran customers find and hire veteran businesses in their own community.

Current member categories include:

• Technology & Marketing — IT services, cybersecurity, marketing strategy
• Banking & Finance — commercial banking, lending, treasury
• Wealth Management — financial planning, investment management, retirement
• Legal & Title — government affairs, legal services, title work
• Staffing & Recruiting — staffing solutions, HR, payroll
• And more — the directory grows as new members join

If you're a Marion County resident, employer, or business owner looking to hire — start with the directory. Every business there is veteran-owned or veteran-led, every member has been vouched for by the rest of the network, and every dollar you spend with them stays close to home.

Two paths, depending on where you're starting from.

If you're a Marion County veteran active in business

1. Submit an application at vetworksocala.com/join. Takes about 3 minutes. Tell us who you are, where you served, and what business you're in.
2. A founding member will reach out within one business day to confirm and invite you to the next 2nd-Tuesday lunch.
3. Come to the lunch. Meet the room. Decide if the network is a fit.
4. If yes — join the CEP (if you haven't already) and you're in. If no — no hard feelings; you've still met the people.

If you're looking to hire a veteran-owned business

Browse the directory and reach out directly to the member whose category fits. They'll respond personally — these aren't lead-gen filters or contact forms that disappear into a void.