The faces of veterans returning from Operations Desert Storm and Desert Shield in the Persian Gulf were enough to convince Katherine Barton that she wanted to do something to help.

‘I was an easy recruit,” Barton said. She was a senior in high school when she enlisted in the Iowa National Guard and 21 when she was deployed to Iraq for a year.

“It really makes you understand that the things we worry about here are so minimal,” she said.

Barton remains focused on veterans. She worked in the background as Iowa Workforce Development, the Iowa Economic Development Authority, the Iowa National Guard and other state leaders worked out the framework of the Home Base Iowa program, which helps veterans find jobs in Iowa.

She oversees the Iowa National Guard component of the program.

“Her hard work is one large factor in the success of the Home Base Iowa program,” said Kathy Anderson, program manager for Home Base Iowa.

When the Iowa Legislature is in session, you can find Barton at the Statehouse, working on policy as the Iowa National Guard’s government relations officer. 

She also carries the Iowa National Guard’s issues to Congress.

She toys with the idea of running for public office one day.

“I definitely see myself in a public policy arena,” Barton said. “But I don’t know whether I have thick enough skin to go through what candidates go through in a campaign.”

One person who has gone through the rough and tumble of politics is Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds.

“She takes on each of her designated roles with great humility and honesty,” Reynolds said of Barton. 

Kristina Stanger, a member of the Business Record Forty Under 40 class of 2012, said the “message that rings through” on her colleague in the Iowa National Guard is Barton’s “advancement of our communities.”

Reasons she’s a forty

• She is a member of the Young Women’s Resource Center program committee and its Young Professionals Council.
• She serves as an industry adviser for the Iowa Association of Business and Industry’s Business Horizons camp for high school students.
• She is a mentor for the Kosovo Youth Exchange Program, helping exchange students become involved in community philanthropy and civic programs.
• She played a key role in development of the Home Base Iowa program.