Aubrey Cubilo wore an American flag-pattern blazer to Salesforce headquarters to learn new career skills.

But the recently separated Navy veteran who served in the Persian Gulf earlier this decade didn’t wear it just to mark Veterans’ Day weekend. “I wear this every Friday,” the Daly City resident said with a big bright smile as she socialized with three-dozen other vets Friday at San Francisco’s Salesforce Tower.

Aubrey spent two hours learning something that used to feel daunting – new tech skills. “I didn’t think tech was for me. I have a bachelor’s degree in English!” she said, laughing.

But she took a kind of online boot camp more than 12,000 vets have taken before her: an introduction to Salesforce on Trailhead, the online interactive academy where anyone can pick up new job skills. Aubrey and the other vets – all Trailhead beginners – picked up their first two badges going through part of a Be A Multiplier curriculum led by Leah McGowen-Hare, Senior Director of Developer Evangelism.

“It was easy,” Aubrey said. “It’s interactive. It is almost like you are playing, and you can earn badges and have fun.”  

The training was part of Veterans Day events organized by Vetforce, the Salesforce employee group dedicated to supporting servicemembers and their families and giving them new skills for transitioning to civilian life. Part of the events included smiling golden retrievers of Operation Freedom Paws who wagged their tails as Salesforce HQ waved the flag for the second straight Veterans Day.

Disabled vet Wade Webster first injured his back serving with the Army in Iraq. The San Francisco resident’s bulging biceps and ready grin suggested the promise of new skills he picked up Friday.

“I’ve done online learning in the past. Most of it is really dry. This was pleasant to interact with. The narrative was fun. That’s a hard thing to get right.”

Wade came to the training figuring skills he learned on Trailhead could help the early stage startup where he works, but the experience got him thinking bigger about his career. In what area?

“Management skills,” he said, smiling.

Learn much more about Vetforce, the group’s programs to help veterans, and Salesforce on Veterans Day on the Vetforce page.