November 11 is the day set aside to honor our U.S. veterans – those who have willingly served our country and made the sacrifice of putting their own lives on the line for the sake of the freedoms and values we hold dear.

I’m proud that nearly 25 percent of our Telos workforce self-identifies as veterans.

The experiences of our Telos veterans are as unique and as impressive as the employees themselves. They have been stationed stateside and deployed to locations around the globe – from the Middle East to South America, and many places in between. They have protected our local communities during civil protests. They have provided security for NATO summits and protection for those aboard Air Force One. They have mentored and instructed future armed forces members, and they have cared for surviving military families by volunteering with the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors.  

For this, and for all our veterans have done, I say thank you.  

While the military experiences of our Telos veterans are personal to them, common themes emerge as they speak of the values and skills they gained in their military careers:

• Teamwork – stemming from the bonds that form from shared experiences and challenges, and collaborating to solve difficult problems.
• Leadership – honed by working with and leading others from all walks of life, each with a unique history and perspective.
• Resiliency – developed by overcoming difficult challenges, often in the most demanding of circumstances.
• Humility – born of serving beside others who willingly put their lives on the line for others and for the freedoms we cherish.
• Gratitude – for the country we call ours, and the freedoms and privileges we often take for granted, having seen firsthand how others live in the absence of those freedoms.

We can all aspire to embody these attributes. I am grateful to our veterans, first and foremost, for their service to our nation, but also for the skills and values they bring to Telos every day.

I encourage you all to thank our veterans – not just on November 11, but every day – and to honor them by making the values they exemplify a part of your own life: at work, at home, and in our communities.