Returning home from military service can be challenging, whether soldiers served overseas or remained stateside. Life at home has a different cadence. Entering the workforce again can feel strange. Friends and family, no matter how loving and supportive, often don’t understand veterans’ experiences.
Purdue Extension, in partnership with the National AgrAbility Project and Indiana AgrAbility, offers resources to help veterans pursue their goals, from homesteading to healthy habits and everything in between.
Combining Extension and AgrAbility resources
The 1990 Farm Bill established the AgrAbility program to help farmers with disabilities through USDA funds. Veterans — many of whom were coming back from overseas conflicts — were among the first clients. AgrAbility has expanded its scope, but veterans are still one of the largest groups the organization serves.
“We're not seeing as many veterans coming back with disabilities, but there's still a transition to civilian life,” said Ed Sheldon, AgrAbility farm and veteran engagement coordinator. “There's an attraction to farming and agriculture. These folks get to be independent, work outside, not punch a time clock — things many veterans are used to.”
AgrAbility connects its clients with tools for success, with many of those resources coming from Purdue Extension, Sheldon said. He regularly refers clients to the Beginning Farmer program, which equips and supports new farmers starting a homestead or business. He also recommends programs focused on improving mental and physical health, leading in communities and navigating family relationships.
AgrAbility matches clients with assistive technologies for farming.
Photos by Tom Campbell 
In October 2025, the partnership between the National and Indiana AgrAbility strengthened when Emily Kring, Extension agriculture and natural resources (ANR) educator and veteran, was appointed as the part-time veteran farmers coordinator. Supported by funding from AgrAbility, Kring works closely with Sheldon and the AgrAbility team to connect veterans to Extension resources in their communities while also fulfilling her duties in Jay County.
“AgrAbility is an awesome organization,” Kring said. “They have a lot of things going on, so I am very much learning while in this role. It's been fun getting to learn about resources I can tuck away in my toolbox to assist people, even outside of the veteran realm.”
Leading from experience
Kring’s new responsibilities call upon her education in natural resources and environmental management and her eight years of experience as a military police officer in the National Guard, which included being deployed for a year to the Middle East.
“I keep saying ‘dream job,’ but it is my dream job: being immersed in a community, actively seeking out different needs and applying my passion to it,” Kring said. “Sometimes you can be removed from the people component of a job, but with Extension it’s all people focused.”
Kring looks forward to working with the AgrAbility team, many of whom are also veterans.
Expanding resources across Indiana
“There's so many things that we're already doing with Extension, and by and large, what we're doing already fits a lot of needs,” Sheldon said. “But we can expand our reach to welcome new audiences.”
Kring plans to continue to create strong relationships in communities. “There are different needs in each small community, so being flexible and adapting to those things is key. It's not a one size fits all state,” she said.
To learn more about what resources are available for veterans, reach out to Emily Kring at ekring@purdue.edu, Ed Sheldon at ejsheldo@purdue.edu or your local Extension office.