Meetings & Events
We are now taking orders for International Housekeepers Week 2008!
To download the PDF version of the 2008 Order Form, click here.
To order products via the I.E.H.A. Online Store, click here.
International Housekeepers Week!
Official Week:
September 14-20, 2008
2007 Housekeeping Olympics in Houston, TX
HISTORY OF
INTERNATIONAL HOUSEKEEPERS WEEK
by Beth B. Risinger, CEO/Executive Director
In 1981, Oneita Dease requested that Doug Slingerland come up with an idea to recognize the “doers” in the housekeeping field. Doug started working right away and his first effort of putting together a “Have You Hugged Your Housekeeper Today?” letter got underway. An article that appeared in the December 1981 issue of Executive Housekeeping Today explained the results of National Housekeepers Week in 1981 and the material was displayed during the following Congress in St. Louis, Missouri, 1982.
Because of the overwhelming response to National Housekeepers Week during 1981, it was quite natural that Doug took on the challenge for 1982. During the 1982 time period Doug developed a button and a theme -- “Our Profession is Clean” -- as well as proclamations that would recognize all of those in the housekeeping profession. Doug and his wife, Dodie, found their home turned into a shipping department during the onslaught of orders received that summer.
Doug and Dodie are certainly to be congratulated for their initiatives for National Housekeepers Week.
The National Housekeepers Week logo became permanent in December 1993. This logo was a combination of two members, Keith Briggs, Kawamish Chapter and Richard Fennessey, New York Chapter, through creative ingenuity and teamwork.
In July of 1996, the celebration became international and was changed to International Housekeepers Week.
Previous National Housekeeper Week themes are listed below:
1981 - Have You Hugged Your Housekeeper Today?
1982 - Our Profession is Clean
1983 - We Have A Clean Environment
1984 - WKIC - We Keep It Clean
1985 - I’m Building Excellence
1986 - Working For A Cleaner Tomorrow
1987 - A Celebration of Pride
1988 - We Exhibit our Commitment!
1989 - We Pass Every Test With Our Very Best
1990 - Forerunners of Service...Dedicated to the Future
1991 - Housekeeping an Important Link in the Chain
1992 - Committed to Quality l Pride l Teamwork l Caring
1993 - Charting a Course for New Horizons in Excellence
1994 - Pride l Quality l Excellence - Solving Tomorrow’s Problems Today (permanent)