Todd Jacobus was appointed as Commandant of the Iowa Veterans Home and Executive Director of the Iowa Department of Veterans Affairs on October 25, 2022. He retired from active military service after serving over 33 years in the U.S. Army Reserve and Iowa Army National Guard. His last assignment was as Director of Military Support to Civil Authorities, where he was responsible for planning, developing, and executing strategies, programs, and resources to train, mobilize, deploy, reconstitute and sustain units in support of domestic operations.

Colonel Jacobus, a Des Moines, Iowa, native, graduated from Hoover High School in 1985, earned a Bachelor Degree in English and Secondary Education Teaching Certificate from The University of Iowa in 1989, a Masters Degree in Public Administration from Drake University in 2003, and completed the International Security Studies Fellowship Program at Tufts University’s Fletcher School of Law & Diplomacy in 2010. He’s a graduate of the U.S. Army War College in 2010 and was promoted to Colonel in July 2012. Todd enlisted in the United States Army Reserve in March 1984, completed the Reserve Officer Training Corps program, and was commissioned a Second Lieutenant, Engineer, in December 1988. His awards include the Legion of Merit (2nd Award), Bronze Star Medal, Combat Action Badge, a Bronze and Silver Order of the de Fleury Medal recipient, in addition to numerous State awards.

Todd served on the Iowa Commission of Veterans Affairs from 2008-2014, the Iowa Emergency Response Commission in
2016-17, and the Iowa Sports Foundation from 2015-21. He chairs the Hoover Meredith Learning Community Foundation
and the Hoover High School Alumni Committee, is Chairperson of the Mid-Iowa Council’s Twin Rivers District Boy Scouts of America and serves on the Board of Directors of the Mid-Iowa Council. He is on the board of Directors of the Iowa Sister States, where he serves as Kosovo Committee Chair, and the Church State & Industry Foundation, and serves as a Commissioner with the Greater Des Moines Sister City Commission. He’s an active member of the Beaverdale Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 9127 and Johnston American Legion Post 728. He is a member of the Acanthus Masonic Lodge, Des Moines Scottish Rite Consistory, and Za-Ga-Zig Shrine. Todd is married to the former Heather Brown of Urbandale, Iowa; they have four adult children, five grandchildren, and reside in Des Moines, Iowa.

Jeffery (Jeff) Roloff, is one of the founding members of the We Care for Iowa Foundation. His commitment to providing services to those in need led to the decision to develop an organization to help our Iowa Guardsmen. With a professional background in regulatory compliance and having served as the regional Iowa National Guard Honor Guard Coordinator, Jeff’s attention to detail and service to others has been instrumental in successfully launching the organization.

Jeff has served as the Director of Product Classification at Automated Export Processing since August 2021 while simultaneously serving in the Iowa National Guard as an Instrumentalist with the 34th Army Band for over 15 years. His vast skill set in management, training, compliance, and dedication to service continue to benefit the organizations in which he is involved. Jeff is a trusted leader with a high attention to detail especially while working under pressure.

Since joining the Enlisted Association of the National Guard of Iowa in 2014, Jeff has served on the Joint Legislative Team, as a District Director, and as Secretary. Within each of these roles, Jeff has gone above and beyond the call of duty to ensure success within the organization and engage members in an impactful way.

Brian Pappaducas is one of the founding board members of the We Care for Iowa Foundation, providing leadership to the Foundation gleaned from his extensive corporate, military, and not-for-profit experience.

Brian graduated from the University of Iowa in 1990 with his Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting and Finance. Over the next 27 years he held Tax Director positions with both publicly traded and privately held corporations, including Ernst & Young, Iowa Telecommunications Services, XPO Logistics, and CFO Systems, focusing on tax compliance and consulting as well as budgeting, financial reporting, and mergers & acquisitions.

In 2018, Brian stepped away from his consulting practice to accept a full-time position with the Iowa Army National Guard as the Army Casualty Operations Officer for the State of Iowa. Brian joined the Iowa Army National Guard in 1986 as a musician with the 34th Army Band. He served in multiple roles with the organization, including Ceremonial Band NCOIC, founder and NCOIC of Scrap Metal modern brass group, and Senior Enlisted Bandleader (First Sergeant). In 2020, he moved to the First Sergeant position with HHD 671st TC, and then to the First Sergeant position with Joint Force Headquarters Company.

He is active in several Masonic organizations, and currently serves as the Treasurer for the Iowa Scottish Rite Masonic Foundation (2015), working with organizations that assist children with deficiencies in communication skills, and providing annual scholarships to speech pathology students at St. Ambrose University, University of Northern Iowa and the University of Iowa. He is also the senior committee member (2014) with the Masonic Charitable Education Corporation (MCEC) Scholarship Selection Committee, providing scholarships to Iowa high school graduates pursuing higher education through community colleges and technical schools.

Michelle Hartwell has dedicated her career to serving her country, Iowans, and fellow service members. She enlisted into the Iowa Army National Guard in April 2013 at 17 years old and attended Basic Combat Training (BCT) and Advanced Individual Training (AIT) at Fort Jackson, SC. Upon completion of training, she was awarded the Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) 42A, Human Resources Specialist, which she has maintained throughout the entirety of her career serving in units across the state of Iowa. Currently, she is assigned at the S1 Non-Commissioned Officer in Charge (NCOIC) of the Iowa Medical Readiness Detachment and is a certified Victim Advocate for victims of sexual assault.

Michelle is also actively involved in the Enlisted Association of the National Guard of Iowa. Serving on the Joint Legislative team for 4 years, she lobbied for and promoted change for issues important to active and retired Guardsmen. As the Chairwoman of the Scholarship Committee, she has spent nearly a decade promoting and expanding scholarship opportunities to assist members and their families across various other organizations. As the current Marketing Committee Chairwoman, she creates designs, graphics, and newsletters instrumental in the promotion of the organization both internally and externally. Michelle also serves as the Treasurer of her local American Legion Chapter, Post 197 Eagle, Nebraska.

Michelle graduated from Iowa State University in 2017 with her Bachelors of Science in Event Management and Leadership Studies. She married her husband, Benjamin, in 2018 and, in addition to serving in the National Guard and her community through volunteerism, is a stay-at-home mom of 2.