2013-08-29 Special Meeting of the Merit Appeals Board Minutes

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August 29, 2013: Submitted by Nicholas Hermes 15 Min. Presentation Outline Introduction Aloha, my name is Nicholas "Nick" Hermes and I'm here today to make my case as the best and most suitable candidate to be the next HR Director for the County of Hawaii. In the next 15 minutes, will briefly share highlights of my background, why I'm pursuing this opportunity, and, if selected to serve, what my core initiatives would be as the HR Director. However, before I begin I want to recognize my wife, Aileen Narido Hermes, who has taken time off from her work as a Special Education Teacher at Hilo Union Elementary School to be here again in support of me through this process. Thanks Honey for being here with me today, I'm the luckiest guy in the world to have you here with me. Thank you for your love and support, and all that you do for our family and our community. Background I was raised in the town of South Windsor, Connecticut which is a suburb of the State Capital of Hartford, and came from modest beginnings. My parents were both educators in our town's public school system and making ends meet was generally tough for my parents in what was and remains a very high cost of living area of the Country. To help pay the bills, my father also worked on a house- painting crew in the greater Hartford/Springfield MA area for nearly 30 summer vacations. I worked alongside him for 4 of those summers in high school and those were my first experiences of what hard work and sacrifice really was and how important it was to get a good education. In my high school years, I excelled academically and was a multi- sport athlete in football, basketball, and track. Driven by a desire to serve my Country, obtain an outstanding college education, and the need to help my family financially, I competed for and obtained acceptance into the United States Military at West Point, a process ATT. A