Camille Vella-Wilkinson, JD

Camille Vella-Wilkinson, JD, is a retired Navy Officer, former elected official (Warwick City Council, State Representative), Certified Professional Resume Writer, Leadership RI graduate and co-Founder/CEO of MISSION: Boots to Briefcases. Her post-graduate education includes a Master of Science degree from the University of Rhode Island in Labor Studies/Human Resources and a Law Degree from Roger Williams University School of Law. A recipient of the Roy Wilkens Renown Service Award, she has been nationally recognized by the NAACP “for significant contributions to the USA in the areas of Civil/Human Rights, Race Relations, Equal Opportunity, Human Resources and Public Service.”

Legislative work at the Statehouse included several key laws within Veterans Affairs, including providing a procedure to upgrade the characterization of discharge for gay and transsexual military members who had been penalized based upon their sexual orientation. She also spearheaded the legislation to exempt military pensions from State income taxes.

During her tenure as an elected official, Camille graduated from the Eastern Leadership Academy, a fellowship program designed to enhance the leadership abilities of state officials from all three branches of government. She was honored with the Legislator of the Year award from the Disabled American Veterans, the YWCA “Woman of Achievement” award, the American Legion Post 43 Auxiliary “Female Veteran of the Year” award and the “Italian-American of the Year” award by the RI Verrazano Society.

In March 2024, Camille received a Certificate of Appreciation from the Office of the Secretary of Defense for the sponsorship and passage of the Nurse Licensure Compact to support military spouse Nurses and “continuing to serve as a public advocate for our service members and their families.” Later that same year, Camille received a Congressional “Veterans Leadership Award” for “… a lifetime of giving back to the Military and Veterans Community, demonstrating vision and the ability to implement actions to improve the lives of veterans.”

Her professional associations include: American Legion Shield’s Post #43, Disabled American Veterans (DAV) Chapter 9, Women Veterans Across the Nation Unit 118, Italian American War Veterans (ITAM), RI Military Organization (RIMO), Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM) and Leadership Rhode Island.

Married to Kenneth Wilkinson, a 34-year military veteran and college Math Professor.