Good morning, how are you? I would like to welcome you to the beginning of the weekend. I’m excited we have a weekend tomorrow and I can’t wait to see what happens. But before I get up and get things ready, I would like to ask you to take a look at the Holidays being celebrated today and let me know which Holiday you most want to share and why.
Employee Appreciation Day first Friday in March- first Friday in March
We all know Bosses get a Bosses Day, so I believe it’s only fair the employee, gets a day in your honor. Employee Appreciation Day honoring employees everywhere.
Celebrations today should be created and executed by your company. Recognitions will vary and may include the company providing lunch, snacks, or cakes. Bosses may even give recognition gifts to the employees. Just don’t expect a day off because most likely being given a day off will not happen.
As we researched this Holiday, I wondered if it was a coincidence that Employee’s Day and Bosses Day are six months apart.
History and Origin of “Employee Appreciation Day”:
According to David Nuualiitia “Employee Appreciation Day first arrived on calendars in 1995. One of the Recognition Professionals International’s founding Board members, Bob Nelson, together with his publishing company, Workman Publishing, created Employee Appreciation Day as a way of focusing the attention of all employers, in all industries.
There are a lot of local and company specific celebrations for Employee Day or week spread across the year.
Holy Experiment Day– always March 4th.
Holy Experiment Day is a Holiday to try something religious and it is a chance to try something, or ask for something, and to measure the results.
There are a lot of things that can be viewed as religious or holy experiments.
- Pray for someone to get better
- We can Pray for Snow
- If you play Sports, then you can Pray for your team to win
- If you are single, then you can Pray someone will ask you on a date
- Don’t forget to say grace at dinner and have your family join you in Praying
- Invite someone to attend Church with you
- Convert someone to your religion
In the examples above, God may grant all, some, or none of your wishes. God may be too busy with the problems of the world to make it Snow. God definitely doesn’t have a favorite sports team and we know the Lord truly works in mysterious ways. Sometimes, God has his own plans that we may not understand.
We don’t want to discourage Holy experiments quite the opposite, we think they’re good. We just believe you shouldn’t judge the results. Your religious beliefs will be strengthened, and you will be closer to God.
Hug a GI Day– always March 4th.
Today is a day that we all can embrace. “Hug a GI Day”. I would like to ask you to give a hug to any and all GIs you see today. Men and women in our armed forces deserve our thanks and appreciation.
GI’s perform an invaluable service to our Country and GI’s risk their lives for our freedom. A simple hug is a small thanks for this vital service to our country.
While the intention of this Holiday is directed at GI’s, there is nothing wrong with giving a hug and a thank you to members of other branches of the Military today.
National Salesperson Day – first Friday in the month
Millions and millions of people spend their entire career in sales which is a hard, tough business, with long hours. Making a sale is not a given. Sales requires training, building relationships, and uses your personality. Paychecks are not a guarantee. The majority of salesmen and woman are paid on a partial or full commission basis. Their income often goes up and down with the economy. Hard working salespeople deserve a day of recognition.
National Salesperson Day is established to recognize the value of the truly professional salesperson. This Holiday also recognizes the hard work performed by professional salespeople.
Who is a salesperson?
- Register clerks at the grocery store
- Clerks at your convenience store
- Door to door sales people
- Car salesman
- Life Insurance agents
- Mortgage brokers and loan officers
- Travelling salesman
- Manufacturer’s reps
- The list goes on and on
Celebrate today by offering thanks and appreciation to any salespeople you come in contact with today.
History and Origin of “National Salesperson Day”:
National Salesperson’s Day was founded by Maura Schreier-Fleming, President of Best@Selling, in March 2000. Maura Schreier-Fleming is an author, consultant, and speaker for salesperson training.
This is referred to as a “National” Holiday. However, we did not find any congressional records or presidential proclamations for this day.
World Day of Prayer – First Friday of the month
World Day of Prayer is today, and the world and all of its inhabitants can certainly use all of the Prayers they can get. In the U.S., this Holiday is sponsored by “Church Women United”, a Christian group of women that strives to work for justice and peace.
The origin of World Day of Prayer dates back to 1887, when Mary Ellen Fairchild James, a Methodist from Brooklyn, NY called for a day of prayer for home missions. Fairly quickly most Christian religions began their own Day of Prayer. In 1927 this became World Day of Prayer, and the date was formally established as the first Friday in March. Here is a fun tip for you: it wasn’t until 1967, as a result of the Second Vatican Council, that Catholics were allowed to participate.
Each year, Church Women United selects a women’s group from different parts of the world, to create a prayer service for the day. Then, everyone, is encouraged to attend a prayer service using what the group wrote.
In 2017, women from the Philippines prepared the service their theme was “Am I being Unfair to You?”
Future Themes:
2018: All God’s Creation is Very Good
2019: Come, Everything is Ready
2020: Rise, Take Up Your Mat and Walk
2021: Build on a Strong Foundation
Planning for the prayer service actually begins three years in advance.
Thank you,
Glenda, Charlie and David Cates
