Steve Ashkin's Thanksgiving Message

I want to wish everyone a happy, healthy Thanksgiving.

However, I'm wondering if we have forgotten the real meaning of Thanksgiving. The holiday is usually such a rushed period we often lose sight of how it started, why we are giving thanks, and why we should give thanks.

As to how it started, the first Thanksgiving was celebrated in 1621. It was not just the early Pilgrims celebrating. Ninety Wampanoag people, Indigenous people, living in the area, joined 53 Pilgrims to make this Thanksgiving Day a success, which by the way, lasted for three days.

The Pilgrims brought geese and ducks to the event. The Wampanoag contributed venison fish, eels, shellfish, vegetables, and even homemade beer.

So, what brought them together?

The Pilgrims had just finished their first successful harvest in the new land, and the Indigenous people had just defeated a rival tribe. They both had something to celebrate. 

The Pilgrims and the Wampanoag people became friends, sealed a peace treaty, and started living together peacefully. It was probably the first example of "diversity in action" in this country, and they were grateful for it.

In 1789, George Washington proclaimed that we had much to be grateful for in America and that "a day of public thanksgiving" should be celebrated.

Abraham Lincoln made it happen.

In 1863, at a pivotal time in the Civil War and the most challenging period in this nation's history, he declared Thanksgiving a national holiday to be celebrated each year in November.

Now that you know more about the holiday's history, I'd like to share some of the things I am grateful for. Possibly these are things you are thankful for as well:

I'm grateful for my family and friends, especially those who believe that we can make the world better – and that it is our duty to do so.

I'm grateful that we live in this country and for the freedoms and opportunities we are blessed with. 

I'm thankful for my friends around the globe who care as much as I do about sustainability and the environment. I am also grateful for how much I have learned from these people.

I'm grateful to be a part of the professional cleaning industry, one of the most important industries in this country and around the globe.

I'm grateful for all the custodial and sanitation workers that go to work each day, keeping our buildings clean, safe, and healthy, often under very trying circumstances.

I'm grateful for how the professional cleaning industry has embraced Green Cleaning.  

I'm grateful that our industry is beginning to understand the importance of sustainability and is now embracing that as well.

I am grateful for the leadership and direction provided by ISSA, BSCAI, IFMA, BOMA, USGBC, IWBI*, and other professional associations who are working to make the world better, cleaner, safer, and healthier.

I'm grateful for our teachers educating our kids, especially those who instruct our youngest children and those kids with disabilities. 

I'm grateful for all the doctors, nurses, and medical staff who have worked so hard to keep us healthy, especially during the pandemic, when so many risked their own lives to help others.

I'm grateful for all our first responders, including our military service people, police, firefighters, and other public professionals, who are willing to put their own lives at risk, even for those they do not know.  

I'm grateful that when I flip on the light switch, there is light; when I turn on the faucet, there is water. That does not happen by magic. Thousands of never-seen people ensure our daily needs are met whenever and wherever we happen to be in this country.  

I'm grateful for all the farmers, fishermen, cattlemen, workers who harvest and process our food, grocers, food distributors, and others who make it easy for me - and all of us - to put food on the table this Thanksgiving Day and every day.

And finally, I am grateful for the good people in this world, the people of faith and those who genuinely care about others and serve as a source of inspiration. These people show us what leadership and humanity really looks like.

And one more thing. Let's all remember that gratitude is a powerful catalyst for happiness and optimism. It makes me feel good about the coming year and our future. I hope it does for you and yours as well.

* The Worldwide Cleaning Industry Association (ISSA)

Building Service Contractors Association International (BSCAI)

International Facility Management Association (IFMA)

Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA)

U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC)

International WELL Building Institute (IWBI)