By Giana Magnoli
Special to the Pacific Coast Business Times

Ron and Lisa Greenwood have been involved in veterans' affairs for decades, first with their pro-bono work out of their San Francisco law office and now with Ventura-based Global Energy & Technology, or GET.

"We ask so much of our veterans that we can't forget them," said Ron Greenwood, president of GET and a Vietnam War veteran disabled in combat.

After doing years of legal work to support veterans, they decided to start a company that provides the latest in telecommunications technology products worldwide.

"We got tired of fighting [as lawyers] after 20years," Ron Greenwood said.

The business, which has a list of clients including many governmental entities as well as communications giants such as AT&T, was started to show that The Veterans Entrepreneurship and Small Business Development Act of 1999 could work.

The telecommunications company is the only veteran-owned business to be awarded AT&T's "Best of the Best" for customer service and has been 99 percent on time with distribution for more than eight years, Ron Greenwood said.

The company got its first contract in 2000 and is already looking to expand to Texas and Georgia, which will earn them more of a national footprint and faster distribution times.

"We take pride in our customer service...We make it easy for companies to do business with us," Ron Greenwood said.

While their company actively supports veterans through its contracts and hiring practices, the Greenwoods are also actively involved in supporting their community, both socially and financially.

When asked if they'd ever move given the company's proposed expansion, Lisa Greenwood exclaimed "No! I hope not!"

"We've fallen in love with the community," she said of Ventura, where the couple has lived for six years. "We're busy all the time but we love it," she said.

She became involved with Ventura County Economic Development Association, or VCEDA, and GET is a founding member of Triad, a VCEDA initiative that works with the Ventura County Naval Base.

"Ron's on the board and he's not just doing it for his name on the newsletter: he's doing it because he really cares about the organization," VCEDA vice president Darlene Ruz said. "If they really believe in something, [the Greenwoods] are willing to back it."

"There are many opportunities to grow a business but they also want to make a difference, and I believe they really have," Ruz said.

Ron and Lisa Greenwood of Global Energy & Technology: the business was started to show that The Veterans Entrepreneurship and Small Business Development Act of 1999 could work.

The Greenwoods organize many fundraisers, including local golf tournaments, and receptions to get both state and national people involved and interested in their community.

"We're trying to broadcast [the community] to the world; we want a vibrant community with more tourism," Lisa Greenwood said. They don't want it to be a gas stop on the way to Santa Barbara, but recognized for what it has to offer as far as economy, education and culture.

The couple is excited about the upcoming government-funded Veterans Home in Ventura County, which is slated to begin construction in January 2009. California is listed as one of two states in "great need" of additional veterans homes, according to the United States Department of Veterans Affairs.

"We've had this passion for 20 years working on behalf of veterans, especially the disabled," Ron Greenwood said.