Honoring my Grandpa on Father's Day
It’s time once again to celebrate and honor fathers and all the men that have a “dad” role in someone’s life. We know Father’s Day is a tradition here in the United States, but haven’t you always wondered how it came to be? Since Believe It Tour explores folklore and legends, I felt today was a prefect opportunity to dig a little deeper into this paternal holiday that honors dads the world over.
Contrary to popular belief, Father’s Day is actually a fairly recent holiday and one that originated in the United States. The idea of Father’s Day germinated in the early 1900s in Spokane, WA when a woman named Sonora Smart Dodd wanted to do something to commemorate the many sacrifices her widowed father had made for her. The month of June was picked for the first celebration since that was the birth month of Sonora’s father.
The holiday took a step closer to being recognized on a larger scale when the National Father’s Day Committee was formed in New York City in the 1920s to help lobby for the holiday to be officially recognized in the United States. However, there was always resistance in Congress when it came to making Father’s Day a recognized holiday. In the late 1950s, a senator from Maine protested that if there was a holiday honoring mothers that fathers should have one, too. In 1966, President Lyndon Johnson issued a presidential proclamation honoring fathers, but he stopped short of actually declaring it an official holiday. Finally, in 1972 President Richard Nixon made Father’s Day a nationally observed holiday that falls on the third Sunday of every June. Today, Father’s Day is celebrated in about 55 different countries, even though the dates vary from the third Sunday, but many are still celebrated in June.
Today is Father’s Day here in the United States and the day for us to celebrate our dads and all the men that fill that role. This is the day we honor, celebrate, or remember the amazing dads, step-dads, grandfathers, or uncles we were or are lucky enough to have in our lives. Thanks to all the great guys out there that give us something to celebrate!