September
8, 2013 is officially designated as Grandparents Day. National Grandparents Day is an annual observance in the United States
that honors grandparents and other seniors, and seeks to strengthen
relationships between the generations. National Grandparents Day
originated with Marian McQuade, a housewife and
mother of 15 children from Fayette County, West Virginia. In 1970 she began her
championship for a special day designated to honor the wisdom and guidance of
grandparents. She hoped to persuade grandchildren to tap the wisdom and
heritage that only their grandparents could provide.
The
United States Congress passed
the legislation proclaiming the first Sunday after Labor
Day as National Grandparents' Day and, on August 3, 1978,
then-President Jimmy Carter signed the proclamation. The
statute cites the day's purpose: "...to honor grandparents, to give
grandparents an opportunity to show love for their children's children, and to
help children become aware of strength, information, and guidance older people
can offer".
McQuade’s lifelong advocacy for seniors not only led to the
creation of National Grandparents Day, it also put her on a path to national
prominence as a leader on senior issues and gave her the opportunity to present
her views to three U.S. presidents (Eisenhower, Nixon and Carter).
Excerpt
from the National Grandparents Day Proclamation:
“As we seek to
strengthen the enduring values of the family, it is appropriate that we honor
our grandparents."
“Grandparents
are our continuing tie to the near-past, to the events and beliefs and
experiences that so strongly affect our lives and the world around us. Whether
they are our own or surrogate grandparents who fill some of the gaps in our
mobile society, our senior generation also provides our society a link to our
national heritage and traditions.”
What are your plans for
commemorating this special day?
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