This is an organization started by three Navy Corpsmen or “Docs” who experienced the many gaps in the system and decided to act. An online outreach project began as “Illinois Veterans of Desert Storm”, after a few months, we decided it should include all veterans that have served since US troops were sent to the region in 1990. Many thousands who began service in Desert Shield went on to serve in Iraq and/or Afghanistan. Therefore, to match the new mission, the name was changed to the “Illinois Veterans of Desert Wars” , with a focus on informing, assisting, advocating for all veterans of what can be referred to as the Desert Wars Era. On January 13, 2018 , Illinois Veterans of Desert Wars was incorporated as a Not-For-Profit with the Illinois Secretary of State.