Celebrating Veteran-Owned Businesses (Upstate Warrior Solution)
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(Photo by Amy Randall Photography)
Founded by Charlie Hall, Upstate Warrior Solution is a community-driven nonprofit dedicated to serving military veterans, first responders, and their families across South Carolina’s Upstate region. Its mission: connect local warriors and civil servants to essential resources, guide them toward self-empowerment, and inspire communities to welcome them as valued neighbors. Operational for over 12 years, the organization maintains offices in the Greenville, Spartanburg, Anderson, Easley and Pickens/Oconee areas.
A West Point graduate, Hall served 10 years on active duty in the Army and Marine Corps. After a combat deployment to Iraq in 2005, Hall moved to Greenville, South Carolina, and began work in the private sector at Harper General Contractors and the USMC Reserves. He then served on active duty as the District Injured Support Coordinator for the states of South Carolina and Georgia with the Marine Corps Regiment from 2009-2014 while volunteering for Upstate Warrior Solution in its formative years.
“Veterans are one of the most resourced groups of people in America, yet veterans can also struggle with navigating the resources. It can be confusing figuring out what the government is doing, private sector and nonprofit spaces,” Hall said. Upstate Warrior Solution cuts through the noise by curating and streamlining access. “We’ve seen veterans needing legal intervention services and their families requiring extra support,” he added. Beyond these areas, the nonprofit aids entrepreneurship ventures, and career transitions – whether post-service or alongside active service.
Since 2013, Upstate Warrior Solution has assisted over 12,000 veterans, 319 first responders, and 28,970 warrior family members. Key support services include:
911 education benefits
4,775 employment services
3,518 housing services
2,405 benefits assistance
1,012 legal services
2,357 recreation experiences
1,245 therapeutic services
Market reach is expanding, with a deliberate focus on deeper Upstate penetration. “We are very community-focused. There are veterans and civil servants who haven’t heard of us before, and we want to get to those people. There are 87,000 veterans in the Upstate, and we are prioritizing local touchpoints over premature expansion into unprepared areas,” Hall explained.
Mentorship has shaped Hall’s leadership. “One of my bosses in the Marine Corps, Terry Jones, taught me the value of face-to-face relationships. Getting in front of people, peeling the onion back and figuring out what’s going on with them instead of trying to form a relationship with someone over the phone,” Hall said. Influences also include Laurie Ott, who founded The August Warrior Project in 2007, and Thomas Norman who founded the Veterans Bridge Home in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Hall’s advice to entrepreneurs is: be flexible and “change the plan as you go.” Hall said, “Don’t get stuck on the original plan. Move deliberately and proceed cautiously. Surround yourself with good people and those who are different from you, but complement you.”
Connect with Upstate Warrior Solution
Website: https://upstatewarriorsolution.org
Office Locations:
Greenville: Rupert Huse Veteran Center, 770 Pelham Road, Suite 102, Greenville, SC 29615 | 864-520-2073
Pickens & Oconee: 811 Saco Lowell Rd, Easley, SC 29640 | By appointment | Warrior Intake: 864-413-1757
Spartanburg: 431 East Kennedy Street, Spartanburg, SC 29302 | By appointment | 864-520-2073
Anderson: 200 Bleckley Street, Anderson, SC 29625 | By appointment | 864-520-2073
