Have you ever been to a football game when the fighter jets fly overhead at the singing of the National Anthem? I think about that feeling when I see the American Flag and in our community the flags are appearing in preparation for Memorial Day this weekend. Memorial Day was originally known as Decoration Day; a day in which the gravesites of the Union and Confederate soldiers were decorated. Initially the graves were decorated with a red poppy and then grew to placing flowers on the graves. In 1873, Memorial Day was officially recognized and established to bring people together to honor the sacrifices for all who died serving our country. Over the years, Memorial Day has transitioned from a day of remembrance to a festivity filled long weekend and a kick off to summer. With the weather warming and the daylight extending it can be tempting to pass over the difficult memories experienced in the past in search for the hope of the future. As an organization focused on efficiency and innovation, Hirease is always looking to the future. However, as the Founder, I combine my love for history to help ground me in reviewing the past in order to best prepare for the future. Since history is prone to repeat itself; evaluating our past decisions, good and bad, helps us to take more educated, less-risky decisions in the future. We work with our clients and applicants every day to address patterns of behavior and vetting the right applicants to help business grow for success. Each hire an organization makes, they evaluate an applicants past education and experience in hopes that confirmation will help predict a greater opportunity for success in the future. Each day, our past experiences contribute to the decisions we make in the future and that is how we as individuals continue to grow and learn.
Our county started to lose sight of history and the meaning of Memorial Day began to fade. In 2000, the National Moment of Remembrance resolution was passed which requests that at 3pm local time, all Americans honor those sacrifices with a moment of remembrance and respect, pausing for a moment of silence or to listen to Taps. We have many employees at Hirease and their family members who are veterans and active with our military. Being so close to Ft Bragg, we can literally hear the military preparing to protect our freedoms.
Since our office is closed on Monday, we plan as an organization to recognize and remain silent at 3pm on May 25 th in honor, remembrance and respect for the past and present sacrifices of all servicemen and woman in protecting our county. To truly enjoy the sun shining above, the smell of grilling in the air and the sounds of the birds chirping and people relaxing together, we have to raise our glass and send thanks to everyone who has sacrificed for our freedoms.
Have a safe and honorable Memorial Day.
Paul Dent, Founder & CEO