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What Is Administrative Professionals Week

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Appreciating Administrative Professionals Week

Every time you step into an office or place of business, you’re more than likely to meet a secretary or receptionist who acts as a buffer between you, the customer or client, and the people providing services. It doesn’t matter whether those services are medical in nature, or mechanical, someone has to be responsible for making appointments, keeping the books and taking phone calls while the service providers are busy doing what they do best: fixing your car, offering medical treatments or organizing your taxes.

Employers around the world, but most especially in the United States, would be hindered in their businesses if they didn’t have an administrative professional taking care of all the little details of office management and financial records that they don’t have the time, and on many occasions, the inclination, to do themselves. An administrative professional can be called many things; secretary, assistant, or virtual Girl Friday, but they all serve one purpose and that is to help the boss man run his business.

Administrative Professionals Week used to be knows as Secretaries Week, and is usually observed during the last week of April, while the specific day to honor all secretaries and office support staff is usually honored on the Wednesday of that week. Since it’s early beginnings in 1952, employers around the United States recognize the efforts and support of their administrative staff and bestow various gifts upon them such as flowers, candy, and cards or even lunch on the boss. If an administrative professional is lucky, his or her boss will offer a raise and a day off work, but the day is meant to convey more than gifts and flattery. The day was organized as the result of the efforts of Harry Klemfuss, a post World War Two businessman, who realized that without secretarial support, most businesses would flounder. He encouraged employers around the country to recognize the efforts of administrative assistants, secretaries and clerks everywhere.

His efforts paid off, and the U.S. Secretary of Commerce, Charles Sawyer, first recognized the event. The day was observed during the first week of June in 1952, and labeled National Secretaries Day. In 1998, the name of the day was adapted to incorporate all fields of administrative support. According to the International Association of Administrative Professionals, anyone who “is responsible for administrative tasks and coordination of information in support of an office-related environment” are considered administrative personnel. Some employers appreciate their secretaries, office managers, executive assistants and office coordinators so much that they help to fund additional training for their employees in order to obtain college degrees or college classes geared to enhance and improve their skill levels. They also encourage, endorse and sometimes pay fees and dues for memberships in various organizations and unions as well as reimburse their support employees for special training in management, administrative and technology skills that will serve to improve their businesses and professional capabilities. Many employers also encourage, and pay for, their administrative personnel to attend seminars and conferences, in addition to workshops that will help them be better administrative professionals.

An administrative professional, no matter what they’re called, serves a wide variety of employers in ways that can’t be measured in flowers or lip service, though such mementoes of recognition are always appreciated. Administrative professionals represent a company or business, and are often the first person clients or customers see and have contact with. This first impression is vital to employers, and can earn or lose clients. As such, most employers recognize and appreciate the position their administrative staff provides for them and wholeheartedly support the event that’s focused on their very important support personnel.

When is Andrew Jackson Day

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Andrew Jackson Day

Andrew Jackson served as the seventh President of the United States and held office for two terms, from 1829 to 1837. Born in South Carolina in 1767, he is considered one of the few presidents that have ever been elected to office by an overwhelming popular vote.

Jackson’s history is distinctly American. Born in the woods of South Carolina, he was basically self-taught. As a young man, he practiced law in Tennessee, though he also had the reputation of a ‘wild man’, engaging in brawls and duels. He is even known to have killed one man in a duel after the man offended his wife. A proud, noble man, Jackson lived near Hermitage, Tennessee, and was the first man elected to the House of Representatives from that state.

Nicknamed ‘Old Hickory’, Jackson was known to be unbending when it came to concepts of honor, loyalty and dedication. He felt that governmental duties were ‘so plain and simple’ that official positions should easily be filled by the common man, and not self-declared politicians. During elections for his second term as President, Jackson won a 56% vote from the American public.

Andrew Jackson is remembered as a president who said what he thought, and such a concept as ‘politically correct’ behavior is something he would have laughed at. Jackson was a man of his word, and everyone knew where he or she stood with him. His popularity was a constant during his years in the Oval Office, and even his opponents could not fault him for his moral stand and respected him for his tenacity.

Inhabitants of his native state of Tennessee celebrate Andrew Jackson Day on March 15th every year. It’s an official holiday in that state, but in no others, which serves to show the affection Tennesseans have for their former son. Born in the backwoods of America, he, like Abraham Lincoln, who later followed him in public service as a lawyer and political candidate, followed his heart and did what he felt was right and just in the eyes of the American people. At the age of fourteen, Jackson fought and was wounded in the Revolutionary War. He became a national hero during the War of 1812, and was the first president to hail from the western side of the Appalachian Mountains.

Millions of Americans celebrate the life and times of this unique president. Not only in Tennessee, but also throughout the nation, as well as those in Washington D.C. celebrate the life of this great and popular president. Visitors from around the country are able to take Andrew Jackson tours and find a multitude of items pertaining to this most favored of American presidents, from paintings to documents to statues. Jackson’s home in Hermitage, Tennessee, is the focal point of travelers from around the country, and is one of the better-preserved early American homes in the United States. Visitors to New Orleans can visit monuments to battles Jackson led in that area during the War of 1812, and visitors to the White House can find the Southern Magnolia tree he planted in honor of his wife. Is remembered as the first president to actually pay off the national debt and actually leave office with a surplice of money in the U.S. Treasury! As president, Jackson expanded both the power and reputation of the office and carried out reforms and exercised his power of veto on more than one occasion. Tennesseans celebrate Andrew Jackson day every year with birthday parties that they fondly call, “Happy Birthday to Old Hickory” events, where southern food and entertainments are in plentiful supply.

America’s office of the Presidency has seen many colorful presidents, but none quite so colorful as Andrew Jackson. His rough and tumble ways seem to personify the American spirit, even in such a prestigious setting, but Jackson wasn’t a man who cared much for doing things the ‘correct’ way; he was more worried about what was right, and followed his convictions to the end.

What To Wear Boating

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Anchor’s Aweigh during National Safe Boating Week

Boating is a favorite American pastime, one that is enjoyed by millions of vacationers every year. Still, many people don’t think about safety when they hit the water, and whether you’re going on a cruise or venturing into a nearby lake to do some bass fishing or even onto the ocean for a day of sunshine and company, safety needs to be considered before the engine turns over.

Every May 20th through the 26th, the country focuses on boat safety. It’s the beginning of summer holidays and vacations, and growing numbers of people ride the waves in search of fun and adventure every year. Everything from white water rafting to kayaking and surfing are enjoyed, as is deep sea fishing, snorkeling and wading and boogie boarding at the local beach or lake front. However, men, women and children are killed or drowned every year because they did not follow basic guidelines when it comes to boating or water safety. There is nothing so tragic as setting out at the beginning of the day to have some fun in the sun, and to have it end with flashing lights, ambulances and a trip to the hospital, or worse, a morgue. Safety is not an option when boating, and making sure that guidelines are known, and followed, is the reason for the existence of National Safe Boating Week.

Almost one million Americans enjoy the sport of recreational boating every summer, and over twelve million Americans own a boat of some sort. While boating fatalities have decreased in some locations, too many people still die from boating accidents every year, and many of those are due to failure to observe and follow safety guidelines. Just as every passenger in a vehicle is required to wear a seatbelt these days, the same goes for boaters, in a different sense. While there is no law that strictly demands every passenger of a boat wear some sort of flotation device, it seems common sense should come in to play when almost 90% of fatalities occur in those not wearing any type of life vest or flotation device. Most states in the United States require anyone under the age of ten years old to wear a life jacket when on the water, and if a boat is less than eighteen feet long, though for everyone else, a life jacket is optional.

As summer approaches, many local communities and schools offer boating safety classes and seminars in order to decrease the number of potential accidents or fatalities in their counties. Boating accident deaths can be the result of drowning, trauma, hypothermia and carbon monoxide poisonings. In most of these cases, the wearing of a flotation device or life jacket can mean the difference between life and death.

Boating authorities warn against the use of alcohol or drugs when planning water activities, but many people don’t heed such warnings. Many times, people new to boating aren’t properly trained in the use and functioning of their boat, which is like asking for an accident to happen, to either themselves or their passengers. In one year alone, it is estimated that wearing a life jacket could have saved almost five hundred lives, which is why National Safe Boating Week addresses such issues with television and magazine ads, and boating supply stores and facilities often offer courses in boat safety and management. Americans everywhere love to get out on the water for a day or more of play, but knowing boating regulations, adhering to those rules, and properly equipping your boat can mean all the difference between a day to remember for all the right reasons, or a day to remember a tragedy that should not have happened.

National Safe Boating Week is observed every May, just in time for all that fun in the sun. The next time you’re invited out on the water, make sure that your captain has enough life vests or flotation devices for everyone on board, just in case. A good, conscientious caption will invariably reply, ‘Aye’.

What Is American Heritage and Loyalty Day

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American Heritage and Loyalty Day

There are many ways people show loyalty: loyalty to friends, to a cause or a country. Loyalty to the United States of America is celebrated every year on May 1st to honor the freedom this country stands for and represents around the world.

Loyalty Day used to be called ‘Americanization Day’ back in the 1920’s, when it was first celebrated with parades and ceremonies at both community and state levels. Nowadays, not many people celebrate Loyalty Day because it’s not recognized as a federal holiday, though it is designated as a national holiday. These days, Loyalty Day has become known as May Day, a day set aside to remember and honor veterans of wars, to enjoy parades and to ensure that loyalty and pride in America is never forgotten. The motto of May Day is, “Remain loyal to America”.

Back in the 1930’s, veterans groups felt that a national day of celebration was in order to help combat the spread of communism throughout the western world. Veterans from World War One, and even some Civil War veterans joined groups promoting a day of remembrance of what the United States of America stood for and to also remember the sacrifices that soldiers throughout this country’s history had suffered and died for. Veterans throughout the country began to organize parades and local events every year, and wrote thousands of letters to congressmen and federal government officials, asking for a day set aside to honor the loyalty for America that runs deep in the American consciousness. Before long, schools, churches and special groups of veterans or military service members joined in. On May 1, 1930, over ten thousand war veterans held a rally at New York’s Union Square to promote and encourage patriotism.

The movement slowly gained ground until the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor brought America to the brink of war and into the battle. Years of war and thousands of soldiers lost their lives fighting for freedom and against the oppression of Nazism until finally, World War Two was won and America’s war weary sons returned home. The idea of a ‘loyalty’ day continued to strike a chord deep in most Americans and in 1949, President Eisenhower made the day a national observance. Official observances of Loyalty Day began in 1950, as more than five million people engaged in planned parades, events and speeches held in communities across the nation. In New York City alone, more than one hundred thousand people showed their enduring loyalty for America and vowed never to forget the sacrifices and the blood that has been spilled in the name of democracy and freedom. In 1958, the United States Congress officially proclaimed Loyalty Day as a national holiday.

Loyalty Day is remembered in most schools today, though mostly at the elementary and middle school levels, with children being visited by veterans of various wars who speak of how important it is to show loyalty to our great country. Flags are flown; classrooms and community halls are decorated with red, white and blue bunting, carnations and crepe paper rolls. Picnics and parades are still celebrated in many rural comminutes around the United States, though not as often as they used to be. Loyalty Day is an important, if not official federal holiday. People throughout the United States encourage others, especially the younger generations, to always remember the debt of gratitude that is owed to all our veterans, both living and dead, for their courage and dedication in service to our country. American principles of freedom and democracy will endure forever, thanks to the men and women who have fought and died to preserve the greatest union in the world.

American Heritage and Loyalty Day

There are many ways people show loyalty: loyalty to friends, to a cause or a country. Loyalty to the United States of America is celebrated every year on May 1st to honor the freedom this country stands for and represents around the world.

Loyalty Day used to be called ‘Americanization Day’ back in the 1920’s, when it was first celebrated with parades and ceremonies at both community and state levels. Nowadays, not many people celebrate Loyalty Day because it’s not recognized as a federal holiday, though it is designated as a national holiday. These days, Loyalty Day has become known as May Day, a day set aside to remember and honor veterans of wars, to enjoy parades and to ensure that loyalty and pride in America is never forgotten. The motto of May Day is, “Remain loyal to America”.

Back in the 1930’s, veterans groups felt that a national day of celebration was in order to help combat the spread of communism throughout the western world. Veterans from World War One, and even some Civil War veterans joined groups promoting a day of remembrance of what the United States of America stood for and to also remember the sacrifices that soldiers throughout this country’s history had suffered and died for. Veterans throughout the country began to organize parades and local events every year, and wrote thousands of letters to congressmen and federal government officials, asking for a day set aside to honor the loyalty for America that runs deep in the American consciousness. Before long, schools, churches and special groups of veterans or military service members joined in. On May 1, 1930, over ten thousand war veterans held a rally at New York’s Union Square to promote and encourage patriotism.

The movement slowly gained ground until the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor brought America to the brink of war and into the battle. Years of war and thousands of soldiers lost their lives fighting for freedom and against the oppression of Nazism until finally, World War Two was won and America’s war weary sons returned home. The idea of a ‘loyalty’ day continued to strike a chord deep in most Americans and in 1949, President Eisenhower made the day a national observance. Official observances of Loyalty Day began in 1950, as more than five million people engaged in planned parades, events and speeches held in communities across the nation. In New York City alone, more than one hundred thousand people showed their enduring loyalty for America and vowed never to forget the sacrifices and the blood that has been spilled in the name of democracy and freedom. In 1958, the United States Congress officially proclaimed Loyalty Day as a national holiday.

Loyalty Day is remembered in most schools today, though mostly at the elementary and middle school levels, with children being visited by veterans of various wars who speak of how important it is to show loyalty to our great country. Flags are flown; classrooms and community halls are decorated with red, white and blue bunting, carnations and crepe paper rolls. Picnics and parades are still celebrated in many rural comminutes around the United States, though not as often as they used to be. Loyalty Day is an important, if not official federal holiday. People throughout the United States encourage others, especially the younger generations, to always remember the debt of gratitude that is owed to all our veterans, both living and dead, for their courage and dedication in service to our country. American principles of freedom and democracy will endure forever, thanks to the men and women who have fought and died to preserve the greatest union in the world.

Why Do We Celebrate American Heart Month

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American Heart Month

Since heart disease is the leading cause of death in Americans, it stands to reason that we should celebrate American Heart Month, a time that is devoted to heart health around the country. The month of February is devoted to heart health around the country, with doctors, community health services and private citizens doing their best to get the word out about how to better take care of our hearts and ourselves.

With almost a million people being stricken with heart attacks, disease or death every year, it’s about time that the public in general was educated about various heart conditions that can severely inhibit quality of life or cause tragic, and sometimes unnecessary death. Every heart-health subject from high cholesterol to coronary heart disease is talked about, written about or heard about during American Heart Month every year. Knowing something about your heart, how it works, how it reacts to particular conditions and how to prevent some heart diseases and conditions is the main thrust of educational topics offered during American Heart Month. Sponsored by major health organizations like the American Heart Association and the Center for Disease Control, American Heart Month certainly helps get the point across to millions of Americans through a variety of venues.

Every February, the American Heart Association initiates programs and tools that help Americans to determine if they might be at risk for heart trouble, and this year has instituted a National Body Challenge. A national campaign called Go Red For Women has challenged one million women to wear red and take action against their highest rated killer by getting a heart check up. Offered online, this cyber checkup offers an assessment of heart health and your risks of contracting any form of heart disease and how to prevent heart disease.

American Heart Month is a time to educate everyone, young and old, about the importance of taking care of your heart, and schools across the country hold events for heart disease research and Jump for Heart programs throughout the United States. The media is inundated with television commercials and magazine ads proclaiming the importance of heart health in Americans, and shows us ways to ensure healthy hearts. Communities around the country hold special events, seminars and special classes that instruct Americans how to best offset heart disease by explaining good eating habits, the benefits of exercise and staying way from drinking, smoking and drugs to promote healthy hearts.

American Heart Month is an opportunity for all doctors, nurses and health care professionals to inform, teach and otherwise instruct both young and old Americans to take care of their hearts. It is understood that by taking steps on their own to insure healthy hearts, Americans can save millions of dollars spent every year on medications, doctors, surgeries and hospital stays. Taking control of heart health can ease the financial burden felt by government programs as well as private pocketbooks. American Heart Month encourages people to get heart screening and tests done that will help prevent mild conditions such as high cholesterol from becoming more serious conditions like coronary heart disease, and often offer testing at reduced prices or even for free at community health locations around the country.

Americans have the power to learn, to promote heart research and to prevent many medical conditions through information and action. Both heart attack survivors and those who have helped to save them celebrate American Heart Month every February. Your heart beats an entire lifetime, and it’s up to each individual to recognize that fact. American Heart Month reminds us that hearts aren’t invincible, and it’s up to us to take care of each and every one of them.

How to Celebrate Aviation Day

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Airborne on Aviation Day!

Aviation Day celebrates the spirit of flight that captured the imaginations of all who dared to fly in the sky like birds. It’s a day to honor those who thought beyond the constraints of gravity and enabled mankind to reach the moon.

August 19th is Aviation Day, observed throughout America most especially by those who work in the aviation industry. The possibility of mass transportation through flight was recognized in the late 1930, and perpetuated by the heroic cross Atlantic flights of Charles Lindbergh and the gallantry of Amelia Earhart. Even before those historic accomplishments however, were the brief yet amazing experiments conducted by Orville and Wilbur Wright, the brothers who launched the first airplane at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina in 1903. The two brothers dared to soar with the birds, and accomplished a dream that had been held by man since the beginning of time. While the flight lasted only twelve seconds, Orville piloted the primitive aircraft 120 feet, and thus began an unquenchable desire to master airwaves and currents that continues to this day.

The brief flight of the Wright brothers at Kitty Hawk propelled others to further develop the Wright brothers’ designs, and before long, independent inventors and daring pilots were making the idea of flight a very likely prospect for the future.

National Aviation Day is not a federal holiday, but is recognized and celebrated by every state in the union; a day to reflect on the contributions and ingenuity of those who seek limitless possibilities. Schools across the nation invite airline pilots, engineers and even those who work with NASA, in the space administration, to offer talks in classrooms and auditoriums around the country. Focus on such events is not only on career possibilities, but in the fields of space exploration and research and technology. Aviation Day is also celebrated with plays and speeches about famous aviation pioneers like Amelia Earhart and Chuck Yeager, who was the first man to break the sound barrier. Aviation has come a long way since that twelve second flight on the beaches of Kitty Hawk in 1903, and Americans remember the dedication and sacrifices that have been made to perpetuate the process of flight and space exploration since then. The huge success of the space shuttle program has encouraged many young people to aspire to become astronauts and become pioneers in further space explorations and discoveries.

Military branches regularly offer amazing and popular aerial displays on Aviation Day from their specialized fighter pilot teams. The Thunderbirds and the Blue Angels draw hundreds of thousands of spectators for every performance. Aircraft designs have come a long way since that first rustic airplane that the Wright brothers flew, and technology and science continues to introduce faster and sleeker aircraft, for both military use and transportation needs.

Children and young people in America create models and crafts that honor the history of flight every year in classrooms throughout the country. They visit museums and learn about the great pioneers in aviation history, and many grow up to follow in the footsteps of their ancestors. Celebrating Aviation Day is more than recognizing the importance of airplanes in the lives of Americans; it’s also a celebration of the human spirit and the desire to explore new realms. That desire to explore and to search extends way beyond the horizon and extends into space. More young people than ever before are entering the space program or learning skills that will find them jobs and careers in the space industry. That twelve second flight had an impact on Americans that is unequalled by any other event in the history of discoveries, and continues to live on to this day.

When Is Abraham Lincoln’s Birthday

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Abraham Lincoln’s Birthday

The United States of America has few presidents that are more beloved and admired than Abraham Lincoln, our sixteenth president. There’s something about the tall, homely man that evokes in people the sense that Lincoln was a genuinely gentle man, one who cared deeply for his country and was distraught at the Civil War that broke out during his years of presidency.

The first observation of Lincoln’s birthday was held in 1866. Washington D.C. was determined to remember their assassinated president with speeches and memorial services that honored the man and what he stood for. Attended by President Johnson, his Cabinet members, as well as senators and legislators from nearly every state in the Union, the event was well represented for this first memorial address offered in the name of the beloved president. The anniversary of Lincoln’s birth on February 12th was designated as the day to honor his memory and flags throughout the capitol and the nation flew at half-staff. That first memorial was a somber affair, an occasion that honored his birth as well as periods of silence marking his sudden and violent death.

Lincoln took the presidential office in March of 1861, and the War Between the States broke out about a month later, plunging the country into a period of darkness that has never been repeated. Lincoln was re-elected to the presidency in 1864, but in April of 1865, just as the war came to an end, he was shot at Ford’s Theatre while watching a play. He died the following morning, and his death plunged the nation into mourning, both in the North and the South. Upon his death, his secretary of war stated, “He now belongs to the ages.”

By 1909, the hundredth anniversary of his birth, Lincoln’s name and memory had become an American favorite, and Americans revered and honored his name more than any other president in history to date. Memorial tablets were placed at Lincoln’s birthplace in Springfield, Illinois, which is a National and Historical Landmark to this day. As each year passed, millions of Americans celebrated the life of the president who sought to hold a divided nation together, and who died as a result of that dedication. Lincoln’s name made a great impact on other countries around the world as well, and many nations joined to honor his memory throughout the world.

In 1910, a bill was passed by Congress to erect a National Monument in Washington D.C. in honor of Lincoln, and thus began building and construction plans for the Lincoln Memorial that is visited by millions of people every year, not only by Americans, but world travelers as well. The monument was completed in 1922. Lincoln’s portrait from 1864 has been used on the five-dollar bill in American for generations.

Schools across the nation observe and celebrate Lincoln’s birthday every year. Children of all ages learn one of Lincoln’s most famous and heartfelt speeches, the Gettysburg Address, given after a horrific battle that cost the lives of thousands of Americans fighting amongst themselves. Lincoln’s legacy urges Americans today to stand united, as he stated, “A house divided amongst itself cannot stand” and to this day, Americans strive to follow his lead and example. As one of the country’s favorite presidents, the anniversary of his birthday, celebrated every February 12th, is a special occasion in states around the nation, celebrated with patriotic parties, speeches and events. Abraham taught all Americans that even those who come from humble beginnings can strive and reach any goals they set for themselves, even if it includes reaching the greatest position in the country, as President of the United States.
During his second Inaugural address, Lincoln spoke words that endure to this day when he said, “With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation’s wounds, to care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow and his orphan, to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations.”

What Is Pascua Florida Day

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About Pascua Florida Day

It seems that several explorers bumped into what would eventually be known as American shores without realizing where they were; Christopher Columbus, Leif Erikson and Ponce de León, among others.

Actually, Ponce de León sailed with Christopher Columbus on his second voyage to the New World in 1493 and remained on an island to the south of Florida called Santo Domingo. Ponce de León was a Spanish explorer who was seeking a fountain of youth. That’s right, a fountain of youth. This is no new-age fad, you see, but a thousand year old endeavor to remain young and vital. The Royal Family of Spain was so pleased with the explorer that they gave him an island in the Bahamas, and it was there that he began his search for the island called ‘Bimini’, which was one of the islands in the island chain that was supposed to contain this legendary fountain of youth

On his travels in early 1513, Ponce de León sighted the shores of southern Florida, and landed near what is known today as St. Augustine. However, he didn’t know that he had landed, not on an island, but on a vast continent. Because he saw enormous amounts and different varieties of flowers, and that it was the time of the Spanish Easter celebration, he called the location, ‘Pascua de Florida’, which in the Spanish language roughly means ‘flowery Easter’. Regardless, Ponce de León claimed the land for Spain and continued exploring the river ways and bays found throughout the Florida Keys in search of his elusive fountain. After arriving in Cuba, he abandoned his search and briefly returned to Spain.

Ponce de León didn’t give up easily. Five years later, the Spaniard tried again, this time with two ships and two hundred men. In 1521, his ships landed along the eastern shoreline of Florida. They actually stepped on American land, only to find themselves being shot at by Native Americans armed with bows and arrows. Unfortunately, an arrow struck Ponce de León and he and other injured crewmen sailed to Cuba, where he died from his wounds several months later.

Floridians have honored Ponce de Leon’s discoveries and spirit by creating Pascua Florida Day, celebrated every April 2nd, in recognition of the Spanish explorer’s naming of their state. While the day is neither a federal or national holiday, Florida natives and school children take the time to learn a bit about the history of their state as the anniversary of Pascua Florida Day approaches every year. Because the explorers landed during the time of the Spanish Easter celebration, Ponce de León felt that the name, Pascua Florida, was completely appropriate for this new, uncharted land.

Unfortunately, it was some time before Florida was properly settled. Native American tribesmen drove off not only Ponce de Leon’s men, but also those of the Narváez Expedition some eighteen years later, and again twenty years after that! Exploration and settlement of Florida would take many decades to develop, but thanks to the initial exploration, though accidental, of Ponce de León in his search for the fountain of youth, determined men and women followed in his footsteps to claim the southern land for Spain.

Celebrated exclusively in Florida, Pascua Florida Day is a day to remember the daring and adventurous spirits of the men and women who came before us, to brave uncertainties, harsh winters and unfriendly inhabitants in order to broaden horizons and discover new lands and living opportunities. Florida celebrates this day with parades, civic events and speeches that remind not only Floridians, but all Americans, that we are here only because of the men and women who came before us, braving limitless difficulties and hardships to pave the way for settlement.

How to Buy Prom Dresses Online

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Time for the Ball – 10 Tips for Buying a Prom Dress Online

The time where a young woman had to go from one boutique to another and try on numerous prom dresses, only to find the one she wanted was not in stock has come and gone. Now, just as with almost anything else, you can get a beautiful designer prom dress online and what’s more, you can do it from the comfort of your own home; mostly.

While buying a prom dress online certainly saves time and possibly some money, you will want to follow these ten tips to ensure the process goes smoothly:

1.    Know what designer you want: By knowing exactly what designer or designers you are interested in you can shorten your search time and just search for the designers that peak your interest.
2.    Know what style you want: Prom dresses come in many styles such as a-line, column, mermaid, and many more. It is important to know which type best compliments your figure.
3.    Try on the dress at a boutique: Once you know what designer and style you want, go to an actual boutique so that you can try on the dress. It doesn’t necessarily have to be the one you will buy, but this will give you an idea of comfort and quality.
4.    Use the measuring chart: It is important to note that one designer’s 8 is another designer’s 6 and so on. Fortunately, most online boutiques offer a measuring chart according to each designer. Be sure to use the chart and never assume one size is the same from designer to designer.
5.    Comparison shop: Don’t just go with the first online boutique you browse. Once you know your designer, style, and size take some time to look at other boutiques to see if they have the same dress at a lower cost. Be sure to factor in shipping costs when comparing prices.
6.    Don’t push it: Just as you would if you were going to a boutique at the mall, leave yourself with plenty of time when ordering online. The last thing you want is to have your perfect prom dress on route on the day of your prom.
7.    Accessorize online: Most online boutiques offer all the accessories you would find at the mall. Many even have suggestions for you as the purchasing process goes on. If you have to accessories anyway, you might as well do it at the same time.
8.    Use only authorized dealers: If you find the perfect prom dress online at a price that is too good to be true, chances are it is. Make sure that you do business with an authorized dealer of the designer you choose so that you can buy with confidence.
9.    Get a tracking number: When your dress is shipped make sure to get a tracking number from the boutique. This way you can check on the status of your dress until it arrives at your home.
10.    Keep records: Keep any e-mails or receipts that are sent between you and the online boutique. Generally buying online is a smooth transaction, but it never hurts to keep yourself covered just in case.

Buying your prom dress online can be a fun experience, just make sure you give your choice plenty of thought first. Once your designer prom dress arrives all that remains is to go to the prom and have the time of your life.