VA Celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month

I receive these VA press releases, as others do, and often times they send them out before posting them at the press release page on their site. Often it seems to take forever for a direct link, this one and another from yesterday have yet to be posted. I will give direct link if they ever do, or follow link below to list.

Recent VA News Releases

15 September 2010 - WASHINGTON - The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) joins the Nation in
saluting the country's largest ethnic group and its more than 1.1
million Veterans as it observes Hispanic Heritage Month Sept. 15 to Oct.
15, as Hispanic Americans have fought in every American war.

"Hispanic Americans have enriched our country beyond measure-in science
and technology, education, the arts, sports, business, government-and in
our military," Secretary Shinseki said.

As a major health care and benefits provider, VA recognizes that to
deliver quality services it must maintain a work force that reflects the
communities it serves. VA has always strived to recruit, develop and
retain a diverse, high-performing workforce and was named one of the top
places of employment for federal agencies when it comes to diversity in
2009. VA facilities nationwide will celebrate the month-long observance
with local ceremonies, activities, and programs.

The theme of this year's Hispanic Heritage Month is "Heritage,
Diversity, and Honor: The Renewed Hope of America." The dates of the
observance coincide with the anniversary dates (in different years) of
the independence of seven Latin American countries: Costa Rica, El
Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Mexico and Chile. Hispanic
colonists settled in Florida, Louisiana and New Mexico, and two of the
oldest

communities in the United States-St. Augustine, Fla. (1565) and Santa
Fe, N.M. (1610)-have had Hispanic inhabitants since they were
established.

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