Roger “Doc” Loesch: August 2023 Veteran of the Month
Air Force Vet - President, USDA Veterans Employee Organization
Roger “Doc” Loesch joined the Air Force in 1992. He specialized in Aircraft Weapons for 15 years, loading the F-15E and F-16 fighter aircraft. Later, he medically re-trained and served as a command post controller before retiring in 2012. During his service, Doc completed a bachelor of interdisciplinary arts and sciences at Arizona State University and a master’s in emergency management from Trident University International.
After 20 years and three times around the world, Doc settled in St. Louis, Missouri, and worked for the American Red Cross. After a year of responding across the United States to multiple disasters, his wife told him to come home because she said it was like he had deployed all over again. During this time, he also completed a second master’s degree in public relations at Webster University.
Once back in St. Louis, Doc became the Rural Development Conference and Event Administrator for the US Department of Agriculture. In 2021, he joined a detail with San Diego Health and Human Services, supporting “Operation Artemis” and aiding unaccompanied children at the southern US border during a significant surge in crossings.
This role allowed Doc to leverage his emergency management expertise to help protect these children and reunite them with their families or sponsors in the United States. Doc was also able to network with many Veterans from other Federal Agencies and continues to engage with this network to increase Veteran Connectivity within the Federal Government.
Today, Doc presides over the USDA Veterans Employee Organization (VEO) and helps to recruit, retain, and promote Veterans within the USDA. As a member of the Combat Veterans Motorcycle Association®, he is a key player in outreach and charity events for the association throughout the year. He remains passionately involved in many of the outstanding Veteran organizations in the Las Vegas Valley and continues to advocate for Veterans’ welfare personally and professionally.
