Three CEC Employees Add Luster to Our Nation’s Veterans Day Observance

While Americans are accustomed to observing Veterans Day and, more specifically, recognizing the men and women who have served and do serve in our armed forces, the origins of this important national holiday are less focused upon with the passage of time.

In 1919 (more than a century ago!), President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed November 11 as the first commemoration of Armistice Day – that is, the end of hostilities in “the war to end all wars,” World War I. Fast forward to 1938, less than a year before Germany invaded Poland to trigger World War II, and Congress designated November 11 of each year a legal holiday to recognize Armistice Day. Then in 1954, a year after the conclusion of the Korean War, Congress approved November 11 as the date to honor U.S. veterans of all wars, and President Dwight Eisenhower shortly thereafter issued the first “Veterans Day Proclamation.”

The bloody history of the past century – coupled with the thankful absence of bloodshed in those periods where U.S. military strength has deterred conflicts – give us ample reason to pause and contemplate the sacrifices made by U.S. veterans living and dead.

At Community Electric Cooperative, we are privileged and proud to have three veterans in our current work force – Glen Presson, Manager of Operations; Mitch Simmons, Manager of Information Technology; and Flynn Gladden, Engineering Technician.

Presson served in the Marine Corps, while Simmons and Gladden are Navy veterans. Each of them credits his military service as an experience that helped him mature, take on responsibility and learn the value of teamwork.

“My service in the Marine Corps validated the value of hard work,” Presson has said.

Simmons: “That’s the part I really enjoyed – the teamwork, the safety – standing left to right, in front and behind, and knowing we have each other’s back.”

And Gladden: “The biggest takeaway for me was learning to function together as a team for a common goal and learning responsibility – being able to adapt to whatever circumstance you’re put in and make the best of it.”

CEC President and CEO Steven A. Harmon said the three men exemplify what it is to be good citizens and good employees.

“I hope that Community Electric’s members will make a point this Veterans Day to show their appreciation to Glen, Mitch and Flynn for their service to our nation as well as for the work they do on a daily basis to make our cooperative better and stronger. They are hardworking, dedicated professionals who care deeply about the success of our organization, about their co-workers and, obviously, about our country. Our cooperative is so lucky to have them here.”