National Grandparents Day

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National Grandparents Day
Observed by Various countries
Type International
Date First Sunday after Labor Day (USA) (UK)
2016 date September 11
2017 date September 10
2018 date September 9
2019 date September 8
Frequency annual

National Grandparents Day is a secular holiday celebrated in the United States and United Kingdom since 1978 and officially recognized in a number of countries on various days of the year, either as one holiday or sometimes as a separate Grandmothers' Day and Grandfathers' Day (for the first time Grandma's Day was celebrated in Poland in 1965,[1]see below for dates by country). One celebrates both paternal and maternal grandparents.

History[edit]

Marian McQuade of Oak Hill, West Virginia, has been recognized nationally by the United States Senate – in particular by Senators Jennings Randolph;[2] and Robert Byrd – and by President Jimmy Carter, as the founder of National Grandparents Day. McQuade made it her goal to educate the youth in the community[clarification needed] about the important contributions seniors have made throughout history. She also urged the youth to "adopt" a grandparent, not just for one day a year, but rather for a lifetime. Co-founder Cynthia Bennett,who worked for Marian's husband, contributed by writing letters of verification.

In 1973, Senator Jennings Randolph (D-WV) introduced a resolution to the senate to make Grandparents' Day a national holiday. West Virginia's Governor Arch Moore had proclaimed an annual Grandparents' Day for the state, at the urging of Marian McQuade. When Senator Randolph's resolution in the U.S. Senate died in committee, Marian McQuade organized supporters and began contacting governors, senators, and congressmen in all fifty states. She urged each state to proclaim their own Grandparents' Day. Within three years, she had received Grandparents' Day proclamations from forty-three states. She sent copies of the proclamations to Senator Randolph.[citation needed]

In February 1977, Senator Randolph, with the concurrence of many other senators, introduced a joint resolution to the senate requesting the president to "issue annually a proclamation designating the first Sunday of September after Labor Day of each year as 'National Grandparents' Day'." 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.[3][4] 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".

Music of U.S. National Grandparents' Day[edit]

In 2004, the National Grandparents' Day Council of Chula Vista, California announced that A Song for Grandma and Grandpa by Johnny Prill would be their official song of the U.S. National Grandparents' Day holiday.[5][6][7]

The National Grandparents' Day Council presented Prill with an award in recognition of his composition: A Song for Grandma and Grandpa.[8]

Flower of U.S. National Grandparents' Day[edit]

Forget-me-not

The flower of the U.S. National Grandparents Day is the forget-me-not which blooms in the spring. As a result, seasonal flowers are given in appreciation to grandparents on this day.[citation needed]

Grandparents' Day[s] around the world[edit]

Australia[edit]

The state Queensland celebrates Grandparents' Day on the first Sunday in October.[9] New South Wales held their first Grandparents' Day on Sunday 30 October 2011, and will celebrate it each year on the last Sunday of October. This year's Grandparents' Day is being led by Council on the Ageing NSW (COTA NSW). The Australian Capital Territory and Western Australia held their first Grandparents' Day in 2012.

Canada[edit]

National Grandparents' Day began in Canada in 1995 but was discontinued in 2014. Motion number 273 submitted in the house of commons by Mr. Sarkis Assadourian read:

That, in the opinion of this House, the government should consider designating the second Sunday in September of each year as Grandparents' Day in order to acknowledge their importance to the structure of the family in the nurturing, upbringing and education of children.[10]

Estonia[edit]

In Estonia, Grandparents' Day (Vanavanemate päev) is celebrated since 2010 on the second Sunday in September.[citation needed]

France[edit]

In France, Grandmothers' Day (La fête des grands-mères) was launched in 1987 by a brand of coffee (Café Grand'Mère), part of the Kraft Jacobs Suchard Group. The date is now included in French calendars and is celebrated on the first Sunday in March.[11]

Germany[edit]

In Germany, Grandmothers' Day was established in 2010 and is celebrated on the second Sunday in October.[citation needed]

Hong Kong[edit]

Junior Chamber International Victoria introduced the first Grandparents' Day in Hong Kong in 1990. It is celebrated on the second Sunday in October.

Italy[edit]

In Italy, Grandparents' Day (officially Festa Nazionale dei Nonni, "National Grandparents' Feast") was established in 2005 and is celebrated on October 2,[12] Guardian Angels' Day in the Roman Catholic Church.

Mexico[edit]

In Mexico, Grandparents' Day (Spanish: Día del Abuelo) is celebrated on August 28.

Pakistan[edit]

In Pakistan, Grandparents' Day is celebrated on the second Sunday in October to pay respect to them. “Grandparents are meant for kisses and hugs, For watching rainbows and catching bugs, For baking all of your favourite things, For books to read and songs to sing.” Author unknown

Poland[edit]

In Poland, "Grandma's Day" (Polish: Dzień Babci) was created in 1964 by the Kobieta i Życie magazine, and popularized from 1965 onwards. It is celebrated on January 21. "Grandpa's Day" (Polish: Dzień Dziadka) is celebrated a day later, on January 22.[13]

Singapore[edit]

Singapore started celebrating Grandparents' Day in 1979, a year after the U.S. started. It is celebrated on the fourth Sunday in November.

South Sudan[edit]

South Sudan started celebrating Grandparents' Day in 2013 and celebrated on the 2nd Sunday in November.

Taiwan[edit]

The Ministry of Education (Republic of China) initiated Grandparents' Day (祖父母節, Zǔfùmǔ Jié) in Taiwan on 29 August 2010, on the last Sunday in August annually, shortly before schoolchildren would start a new semester.[14]

United Kingdom[edit]

The celebration was introduced to the UK in 1990 by the charity Age Concern. It has been celebrated on the first Sunday in October since 2008,[15] although it is not widely advertised and has not been as commercially successful as Mother's and Father's Day. Businesses specialising in gifts and greeting cards have started merging the respective grandparents days with Mother's Day and Father's Day to try to boost sales.

United States[edit]

National Grandparents' Day in the U.S. is the first Sunday after Labor Day, in September.

Dates[edit]

These dates are only relevant to the day as it is celebrated in the United States.

Year National Grandparents Day
1979 2007 2035 2063 2091 September 9
1980 2008 2036 2064 2092 September 7
1981 2009 2037 2065 2093 September 13
1982 2010 2038 2066 2094 September 12
1983 2011 2039 2067 2095 September 11
1984 2012 2040 2068 2096 September 9
1985 2013 2041 2069 2097 September 8
1986 2014 2042 2070 2098 September 7
1987 2015 2043 2071 2099 September 13
1988 2016 2044 2072 September 11
1989 2017 2045 2073 September 10
1990 2018 2046 2074 September 9
1991 2019 2047 2075 September 8
1992 2020 2048 2076 September 13
1993 2021 2049 2077 September 12
1994 2022 2050 2078 September 11
1995 2023 2051 2079 September 10
1996 2024 2052 2080 September 8
1997 2025 2053 2081 September 7
1998 2026 2054 2082 September 13
1999 2027 2055 2083 September 12
2000 2028 2056 2084 September 10
2001 2029 2057 2085 September 9
2002 2030 2058 2086 September 8
2003 2031 2059 2087 September 7
2004 2032 2060 2088 September 12
2005 2033 2061 2089 September 11
2006 2034 2062 2090 September 10

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Dzień Babci wymyślono w Poznaniu". wp.pl. Retrieved 2014-01-21. 
  2. ^ Congressional Record, February 21, 1977, Joint Resolution S.J. Res. 24, 95th Congress, 1st Session
  3. ^ Jimmy Carter: Proclamation 4580 - National Grandparents Day, 1950
  4. ^ Carter, Jimmy. Greeting to Johnny Prill. 2010. National Grandparents Day. Web. <http://www.nationalgrandparentsday.com/PresidentJimmyCarter.html>.
  5. ^ "Gratitude for grandparents". The Roanoke Times. 2014-09-04. Archived from the original on 2015-01-13. Retrieved 2015-01-13. It is appropriate, then, that the official flower of Grandparents Day is the forget-me-not. “A Song for Grandma and Grandpa,” written by Johnny Prill, was named the official song of the holiday in 2004. 
  6. ^ Coleman, Marilyn J.; Ganong, Lawrence H. (2014). The Social History of the American Family: An Encyclopedia. Sage Publications. p. 641. ISBN 1452286159. Retrieved 2015-01-21. Since 2004, there has been an official Grandparents Day song, "A Song for Grandma and Grandpa", by Johnny Prill, a singer-songwriter in the folk-polka traditions and a lifelong volunteer performer at nursing homes. 
  7. ^ Barber, Lorin (2011). 28 Tips to Become a Great Grandpa. Cedar Fort, Inc. p. 36. ISBN 1462100554. Retrieved 2015-01-21. For example, the first Sunday after Labor Day is designated "Grandparents Day" in the United States. The official "Grandparents Day" has an official song, "A Song for Grandma and Grandpa," and an official flower, the forget-me-not. 
  8. ^ National Grandparents Council. Johnny Prill Wins National Songwriter's Award. National Grandparents Day. 14 August 2004. Web. <http://www.nationalgrandparentsday.com/NationalSongwritersAward.html>.
  9. ^ https://www.communities.qld.gov.au/communityservices/seniors/grandparents-day
  10. ^ "Debates (No. 247)". Debates of the House of Commons: 35th Parliament, 1st Session. House of Commons of Canada. October 25, 1995. Retrieved May 11, 2008. 
  11. ^ KJS lance la 13e Fête des grand'mères », Stratégies, 17 février 1999
  12. ^ ""Istituzione della Festa nazionale dei nonni", Legge 31 luglio 2005, n. 159" (in Italian). 
  13. ^ "Dzień Dziadka". Retrieved 2014-01-21. 
  14. ^ (Chinese) 教育部 99年第一屆「祖父母節」記者會活動
  15. ^ Grandparents Day has moved to Sunday October 5, 2008 - Age Concern 2008-02-26

External links[edit]

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