Robert Nardelli, Home Depot’s chief executive officer, chairman and president, publicly reinforced the organization’s ongoing commitment to those employees during a ceremony at the corporation’s Atlanta headquarters. Nardelli said he "proudly credits these individuals with being instrumental in making the home improvement retailer a success."

During the ceremony, Georgia military officials and government representatives watched while Nardelli signed an Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve statement. That document, he said, re-declares his support for these model employees.

As Nardelli put pen to paper, a color guard from the Georgia Army National Guard’s Youth Challenge Academy at Fort Gordon stood at attention and presented the American Flag and Georgia state flag to the audience.

While The Home Depot’s support for the Guard and Reserve has been re-affirmed in ink, confirmation of corporate support is apparent because of the 1,800 individual gold tasseled banners with single blue stars that line the organization’s common pathway. Each banner represents a Home Depot "team member" who is, or has been deployed, Nardelli said. He looks forward to being able to "welcome each and every one of these "stars back to the company and back home," he said during the ceremony.