“Saying thank you is more than good manners,” according to William Painter. “It is good spirituality.”
Who was William Painter? Every time you pry or twist the cap off a bottle of soda, you can thank him. Mr. Painter was an Irish-born American engineer, inventor and the founder of Crown Holdings, Inc., a Fortune 500 company. He lived from 1838 to 1906 and patented 85 inventions, most notably the crown bottle cap (still used all over the world for carbonated drinks in glass bottles) and the first bottle opener. The company he founded remains a leader in packaging technology.
Read More: Gratitude for the Guideposts Foundation
Clearly, Mr. Painter had a brilliant mind, and if this quotation speaks of his true nature, he was a man who saw the deeper spiritual value in sharing a thank you. Perhaps today there are still a few of his employees who could tell us if verbal and/or written thank you’s were a part of his management of his company. I would like to think so.
Grandma and Grandpa Peale, along with Raymond Thornburg, were honored and grateful to start Guideposts in 1945. As you know from visiting the Guideposts website and from receiving our magazines and other publications, Guideposts remains a healthy and impactful company. This health is due to your support of Guideposts and its ministry and I, and the rest of the Peale family, thank you, very, very much, for that.
It is also due to the bright, creative and faith-filled men and women who work at Guideposts. Their dedication to bringing inspirational stories and messages, prayer, and written and audio materials to as many in need as they possibly can is profound. I feel deep gratitude to each member of the Guideposts team and am moved by the millions of lives they impact through their work.
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Albert Schweitzer said, “At times, our own light goes out and is rekindled by a spark from another person. Each of us has cause to think with deep gratitude of those who have lighted the flame within us.” This lighting of the flame is what the Guideposts team does through their work.
“Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it,” wrote William Arthur Ward. So, to all of you who support the inspirational work of Guideposts and to all who work for Guideposts, I say thank you. It is a thank you that is filled with gratitude, sincerity and spirituality.
