Hispanic Heritage Month
The U.S. military is currently commemorating Hispanic American Heritage Month, which began on September 15th and runs through October 15th. Through programs, exhibits, and military/community events, the theme, “Diversity United, Building America’s Future Today,” is a homage to the brave Veterans and active duty military who can trace their roots to Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central and South America.
Hispanic Medal of Honor recipients date back to the inception of the medal during the Civil War. Included amongst the forty-four men of Hispanic heritage who have been awarded the Medal of Honor was Corporal Joseph H. De Castro of the Union Army, for his actions at Gettysburg. Following the Civil War, medals were awarded to men such as Private David Bennes Barkley, for his actions during World War I, and Harold Gonsalves and Jose Valdez, who were 2 of the 13 Hispanic men awarded the medal in WWII. Rodolfo P. Hernandez and Joseph C. Rodriguez were the only living recipients of the eight men who were awarded the medal during the Korean War. Among the brave men who valiantly served in Vietnam, sixteen Hispanic men were singled out for the Medal of Honor. And joining these decorated heroes is the most recent recipient, Sergeant First Class Leroy Petry, for his actions in Afghanistan.
The business world also benefits from the contributions made by a variety of Hispanic Veteran professionals, including NASA astronauts Joseph Acaba and Carlos Noriega, NYPD Chief of Patrol Nicholas Estavillo, Golfer Lee Trevino, and Congressman Frank Tejeda. According to the most recent Census Bureau Business Survey, Veteran-owned businesses under Hispanic ownership doubled from in the five years between 2002 to 2007. Currently, Hispanic veteran-owned businesses number over 113,000 and employ approximately 141,000 people.
The United States in a melting pot, and diversity has never been more valued. At Military Connection, we are proud to join forces with employers who value our talented and diverse audience of Military and Veteran professionals. Those who have served exhibit traits such as loyalty, intelligence and teamwork. They have proudly served our country while receiving state-of-the-art training. Many of them have chosen to continue their education, thanks to the rich educational benefits they separated with. If you would like to reach our audience for employment or education opportunities, please contact us.
