Education and Sharing Day, U.S.A., 2013

Proclamation 8941 of March 21, 2013

Education and Sharing Day, U.S.A., 2013

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

In a letter to his nephew, Thomas Jefferson once wrote,
``an honest heart being the first blessing, a knowing
head is the second.'' It is a notion that rings as true
today as it did in 1785: that just as we owe our
children a strong start in the classroom, so must we
pass on the common values that help define us as a
people. On Education and Sharing Day, U.S.A., we
celebrate hard work, service, and commitment to
learning as cornerstones of a bright future for our
youth.

We know education is essential to putting our children
on the path to good jobs and a decent living. It is a
simple fact that to out-compete the rest of the world
for tomorrow's jobs, we need to equip our sons and
daughters with the education and skills a 21st-century
economy demands. We need to give them every chance to
work harder, learn more, and reach higher, from cradle
to career.

We also know that learning does not stop when students
leave the classroom. Whether at the dinner table or on
the field, it is our task as parents, teachers, and
mentors to make sure our children grow up practicing
the values we preach. We have an obligation to instill
in them the virtues that define our national character
-- honesty and independence, drive and discipline,
courage and compassion. And as citizens of a country
where so much progress came only after we fought for
fairness and equality, we must remember the wisdom of
the Golden Rule by treating others as we would want to
be treated.

This day recalls the memory of Rabbi Menachem Mendel
Schneerson, the Lubavitcher Rebbe, who taught
generations of young men and women the importance of
education and good character. His work strengthened
ties between people around the world, and his legacy
continues to inspire the service, charity, and goodwill
he championed in life. As we reflect on the example he
and so many others have set, let each of us strive to
better realize the values we share.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the
United States of America, by virtue of the authority
vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the
United States, do hereby proclaim March 22, 2013, as
Education and Sharing Day, U.S.A. I call upon all
Americans to observe this day with appropriate
ceremonies and activities.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
twenty-first day of March, in the year of our Lord two
thousand thirteen, and of the Independence of the
United States of America the two hundred and thirty-
seventh.