Thankfully, our Nation makes it a habit to pause from daily life each Thanksgiving to be thankful, grateful and appreciative. Thanksgiving has always been my favorite holiday of year and there are many reasons why this holiday is so meaningful to my family as we can trace back our lineage to John Hancock as one of the signatories of our Constitution. 

Thanksgiving dates back to 1621 when the Pilgrims and natives come together for a three-day celebration of harvest and blessings.

Life for the Pilgrims was far from easy— half of the settlers from the Mayflower died from starvation and disease —but they still focused on the blessings and abundance. President George Washington proclaimed on Oct 3, 1789, that this celebration (Thurs. Nov. 26th)  was to be a time of public thanksgiving and prayer to the Almighty with grateful hearts for our civic liberties, freedom and the blessings of life … asking people to live in harmony. 

Even during the Civil War Americans could find reasons to give thanks. In October of 1863, with the country gripped in war, President Abraham Lincoln asked all Americans “to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise…” 

On Thanksgiving, let us pause to reflect on all that we are grateful for, and think about where all our amazing advancements come from. Inventions, new businesses, and prosperity do not just appear spontaneously; it takes someone with a vision and the courage to act on that vision to make it happen. This intelligence and activity, this key to prosperity, societal and environmental advancements and healing, comes from the entrepreneur, the heroic spirit of the American dream embodied.

Entrepreneurs often have a culture of appreciation (and opportunity) as their lives are built on ideas and innovation, they work to convince people what could be, not what is. Let us live in the future they say.   

This holiday, pause to remember the entrepreneurs behind the amazing products you have, all those gadgets used to catch the latest info, all the technology that lets you communicate with family and friends across the globe, all that medicine that keeps grandma going, or the natural pest control that keeps pest out of your home. Everywhere you look the entrepreneurs made your life easier and better.  But we need to remember that no one achieves success alone, so we are appreciative of all the people who help us in our journey: family, friends, employees, customers, investors, vendors, suppliers and many more. Thus we stand on the shoulders of others who came before us, and who are with us, as we depend on many helping hands.  

We need Thanksgiving to remind us of the bounty we’ve been blessed to receive. Many thanks, and much appreciation, to everyone actively involved in our robust entrepreneur ecosystem.

Have a blessed Thanksgiving with family and loved ones, and please take time to remember our entrepreneurs, our values, freedoms, and the many reasons we can all find to give thanks.  

Thank you!!

Kari W Block

Founder & CEO